Cross Student Council Disbanded

by Melissa Bailey | Sep 16, 2011 1:32 pm

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Posted to: Schools, School Reform

The student council at Wilbur Cross High School returned this fall to find out the principal had dissolved the group and created new rules to rebuild it as a more “inclusive” organization—without consulting students. News of the abrupt change came a few days into the school year at the city’s largest high school, which sits on East Rock’s Mitchell Drive. Students had been waiting to see what their future would hold after Cross Principal Peggy Moore nullified the results of a student council election that took place at the end of last school year after an outspoken student activist won the presidency. Click here to read more about that decision. (That activist’s politics club was also disbanded after he organized a downtown protest in favor of more spending on textbooks and less on administrators.) Students thought they might get the chance to hold another election, this time under rules that the principal approved of. Instead, they found out that their group no longer exists. Isaiah Lee (pictured above), who was elected as council president last year, said he was not directly informed of the decision. “Ms. Moore did not inform anyone—the decision was made that no one knew of,” Lee said. Instead, he found out the news in an email last week. Student council “is officially disbanded,” Alexandra Torresquintero reported in an email to her peers after meeting with Moore. Torresquintero was elected as the council’s vice-president last year. Moore said Thursday that the school has no student council at the moment and is working to rebuild one that better represents Cross. Student council should not be “a group of elitist kids that say, ‘We run Cross,’” as it was in the past, Moore said. “We want total inclusion in the building.” Cross is often described as having two schools within one: a small AP/honors track (to which Moore was referring) and the general student population. Lee said he doesn’t plan to be involved in the student council’s new incarnation. He has decided to step back from the council and focus on getting into college next year. But he objected to the way the decision was made—the latest in the line of decisions being made without student input. “I personally don’t feel it’s fair to these other students who worked so hard, to have all that taken away,” he said. “Students should be involved in the decisions about the school—especially about the organizations that they run.” The incident capped a series of run-ins where students said their voices were being quashed at school: The student political club was disbanded after Lee led a march on City Hall in favor of more spending on textbooks and less on administrators. The issue arose at a mayoral debate this summer, when Mayor John DeStefano defended Moore and candidates challenging him for the Democratic mayoral nomination criticized what they called an example of a stifling of free speech that marks how the schools and the city are run. (Click here to read an article written by schools Superintendent Reggie Mayo in Moore’s defense.) After that incident, Lee won the student council election, and Moore nullified the results. Now the council, which tended to use less aggressive tactics in dealing with school administrators, has been eliminated. Lee called on students, parents and taxpayers to call the school about the latest decision. In an interview in her office after school Thursday, Moore defended her decision to dissolve the group. “Nobody at this school including myself has ever tried to stifle a student’s comments or stopped a student from being positive,” Moore said. “But there are rules in this building.” The old student council didn’t follow the rules requiring having an adviser present during the election, she said. Moore was asked why the student council wasn’t consulted in the process of revamping the group. “We don’t have a student council,” she replied. She added that those students who were involved in the past will be permitted to run for election to be part of the new group. The new rules, she said, will replace the student council’s constitution, which was created in 1979. Realizing the old constitution was outdated, Moore said, administrators set to work over the summer to come up with new bylaws for the group. Assistant principals researched bylaws of other student councils across the state and settled on new bylaws. They gave a set of bylaws to a group of teacher leaders, who agreed to them, she said. According to the new rules, each of 70 homerooms will elect a student to be its representative. Those 70 kids will make up the student council, which will then elect officers, Moore said. Al Meadows (pictured), the longtime adviser to the student council, said the new setup aims for a goal Cross has long sought to achieve: A student council that better represents the school’s 1,400 kids. “We’re trying to open it up to everybody,” Meadows said. In the past, any student was permitted to become a member of the student council. However, a small number of kids chose to participate. Lee estimated 25 kids were involved last year; Meadows put that number at 10. Moore said students felt excluded by the group that was running the council. With the new setup, she said, “I think more and more students will feel comfortable. It’s not a handful of kids who are friends.” Meadows said the new arrangement will also lessen the burden on the members of the student council, who last year put immense individual effort into directing coat drives and blood drives. Now more students will be involved, spreading out the workload, he said. Meadows said all 70 homerooms will hold elections for student council representatives sometime before next Friday. Moore said the new student council will be a more productive forum. “Before, the student council had no real goals or set directions,” she said. “We thought this year we would have activities and objectives that they wanted to meet.” To those who may not like the new rules, Moore advised, “There are a lot of things in life as you grow older that you won’t like.”

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posted by: Cross Parent on September 16, 2011 1:45pm So they’re replacing a student council that ANYONE COULD JOIN with something more inclusive? Will there be some sort of cap on the number of motivated, high-achieving students who can participate?

posted by: streever Moore is teaching these children a valuable lesson. Sometimes, fairness and society breaks down, and a mean-spirited ... is allowed to get their way. They are even allowed to call you names, attack you in the press, and rub salt in the wounds after they’ve already won the fight. Sometimes, it is worth it to stick it out and fight the good fight. In this case, I think Isaiah is making the right decision, and moving on to a more important fight—college and his future. ... Like her boss, John DeStefano… It is no surprise that his top principal would be as afraid of criticism and as down on openness as he is. The biggest lesson Isaiah can learn from this is that sometimes, a very petty, very insecure person is in charge of something—and there is usually a more important and meaningful thing you can be doing where they are not involved. I wish him the best as he continues to grow and evolve, while Ms. Moore continues to hide under the shell the Mayor gave her in order to preserve her extremely thin skin.

posted by: ASL on September 16, 2011 1:52pm What a farce. If Ms. Moore had been interested in teaching, rather than controlling, she might have sat down with the existing student council at the beginning of this school year and said, “Thank you for the time and energy you’ve put into being on the student council. Thanks for stepping up when a lot of your peers choose not to get involved. But I think it’s unfortunate that so many other students at this school choose not to get involved. Can you work with me to improve that situation? Perhaps you would be open to reworking your bylaws and constitution this semester and, come January, we can have a more inclusive student council.” A teachable moment lost to the insatiable desire to control. Ms. Moore should devote the time she’s been spending on this student council nonsense to focus on whether her students are learning.

posted by: Moira on September 16, 2011 2:08pm Holy power trip, Batman! “A teachable moment lost to the insatiable desire to control.” Exactly.

posted by: brutus2011 on September 16, 2011 2:10pm Astonishing! One thing is for sure. The reason given by Cross authorities is the not the real reason for disbanding the student organization. Whatever the real reason(s) is, it is only known by the ed execs who run NHPS. And they aren’t talking. I guess those of us who “lead limited lives” can’t handle the truth! And Tuesday’s election is exactly why these people think they can do whatever they want. Because they can. Astonishing!

posted by: Cedarhillresident on September 16, 2011 2:34pm Did she just call active students…a group of elitist kids??? I saw the kids in this group at the budget meeting…Really!!! They are elitist because they are what…are speaking out? HOW DARE YOU revert to name calling. That alone is pitiful! And you are a principle?? Holy Cow! This women has some major issues and she is the one that needs to be disbanded from the new haven school system! We need to make calls and have state people review her. Really.

posted by: Marie Brenner 11 years ago Moore was the principal at BRAMS. I was an honor student and active member of the performing arts. I was also outspoken and free-thinking. The few times I ever interacted with Ms. Moore involved being punished for voicing my opinion. Now, we are not talking demonstrations on city hall (although, I see nothing wrong with exercising that freedom either). We are talking about an 12 year old girl asking questions about why things were the way they were. I was an extremely involved kid and Moore did not interact or take interest with the “good” students or performance groups. In fact, I do not remember her at a single concert or event, yet she of course took credit for all the talent and the school. This is as much an offense of exclusion as the supposed segregation and neglect Moore criticizes at Cross. I also attended Cross, where I was involved in many student organizations, including class council. I don’t argue that AP/honors kids held the clubs together, but there was certainly involvement from a diverse background of students. The way to encourage involvement of a wider representation of students, is not to punish a student who was voted into office BY OTHER STUDENTS. The message Moore is sending is a general disregard for rules and her inability to work within a given system. If Moore does not like a student, extra-curricular group, or set of rules she gets rid of them - not exactly the type of real-world problem solving these kids need to learn. From Cross I continued to college and received a degree in anthropology. One of the most successful strategies in humanitarian efforts is the approach of asking/recording what it is the members of a community think they need, what changes they would like to see, how they think those can be achieved. She takes little interest in the actual wants and needs of students. Coming into a community and saying “your way doesn’t work, I’m changing all the rules” does not work. period.

posted by: DISTRESSED! on September 16, 2011 2:46pm I wish to remind Mr. Meadows that there were 29 active Student Council members at Wilbur Cross last year; all of them voted in the election that Peggy Moore made null and void. Many more students would have voted had she not changed the rules one week before the election and restricted voting only to student council members. Had the student won who she wanted to win, the election results would have stood. Isiah was being punished for being an activist. She, Dr. Mayo and Mayor DeStefano all wanted to send a message to students that says: There is NO Democracy here. WE RULE! I am sure the students and parents have gotten that message LOUDLY and CLEARLY. It is interesting to hear Ms. Moore talk about elitist group of students. Neither Isiah Lee nor the other student council members last year created the 3rd floor classes at Cross. That elite group for AP students on the 3rd floor at Wilbur Cross was started decades ago by the school and central administration to accommodate the wealthy Caucasians whose children attended Hooker and Cross; they were separated from the masses and prepared for good colleges. Black and Latino students took mostly basic classes. Those who did not have parents to advocate for them remained in those classes for four years. Streever hit the nail right on the head. Mr. Meadows and Mrs. Moore are giving these children a bitter lesson to take into their future. It is a disgrace that this is allowed to happen. I have no doubt that Isiah Lee will shine in the future. He has to know that there are ethical, honest and committed educators in the USA who are neither tyrants nor liars. As difficult as it is to take the HIGH ROAD, he should continue to do so.

posted by: westvillelocal on September 16, 2011 2:54pm Any comments from the current mayor?

posted by: A "Teaching Moment?" on September 16, 2011 3:52pm Ms. Moore can do anything she wants, because the Cross students and their parents are willing to roll over and let her. It’s their choice—but if my kid were there I would be pulling him/her out and organizing to get a more responsive administration in to run the school.

Where is the PTO/PTA on this item? And is Cross required to have a Parent Governance Council under NCLB?

http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2678&Q=322630

posted by: robn on September 16, 2011 4:37pm Brother this takes the cake… I’m speechless so to all those who so eloquently analysed the power trip, DITTO DITTO and DITTO.

posted by: Paul Wessel on September 16, 2011 4:52pm @ “A Teaching Moment” raises a good point. Wilbur Cross was required by law to have a School Governance Council in place by January 15th of this year. The Council is required to have 7 parents (elected by parents), 5 teachers (elected by teachers), 2 students (elected by the students)and 2 community members (elected by the parent and teacher members of the Council.) See http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/pdf/circ/circ10-11/c3.pdf for the details. Has it happened? If not, could be an interesting opportunity for parent-teacher-student collaboration…

posted by: Jane Doe on September 16, 2011 5:11pm This situation at Cross is truly insane. First, the city and Yale promote the Promise program which encourages “all” students to do their best so that they can go to college with a scholarship and then they “put down” the kids who excel by calling them elitist cacaucasians. While it’s true that many of the kids in the upper track are white, they’re not all rich kids with wealthy backgrounds. By the way, Since when don’t we care about white kids? Further, there are many African American and Hispanic kids in the upper track and that number is getting larger. Talk about contradictions. You go Issiah! Good luck to you in your future. Just be happy you’re graduating.

posted by: Mister Jones on September 16, 2011 5:18pm Look at the facts: this was a “student council” in name only. It was basically a club and it’s being replaced by a representative, elected council. It sure sounds a lot more democratic than the old way. Now, a 70 person board may be a bit unwieldy, but it seems like a big improvement. And yeah, I would say it’s elitist to have a clique of 25 kids anointing themselves—oops, volunteering—to be the student council and choose a student body president from among themselves. I’ll grant you that the process left something to be desired. In my perfect world the old student council club members would have been involved coming up with a new plan instead of it being handed down from above. But the bottom line is that this is a change that should be celebrated as it should lead to more student activism and transparency. Moore’s motives may be mixed with the impure, and her approach heavy-handed, but it looks like some of the folks posting are blinded by their dislike of anyone connected with the mayor. But…if you committed to democratic [small D] values, wouldn’t you applaud this new, elected, representative body?

posted by: WCHS Class of 2028 Parent on September 16, 2011 5:31pm Thank you, NHI, for providing the answer to a question that has been vexing me ever since before the school year began. When I learned that WCHS teachers did not learn what classes they were going to be teaching this year until two weeks before the first day of school (significantly hampering their preparation efforts), I asked, “What have they been doing all summer?” When I learned that WCHS students did not receive their class schedules until the first day of school, resulting in general chaos because nobody knew where they were supposed to be, I asked “What have they been doing all summer?” When I learned that, two weeks into the school year, no WCHS students had been given computer logins, peventing them from using the school’s computers or utilizing online resources, I asked, “What have they been doing all summer?” When I learned about the effort to identify students who had been assigned to classes that they either had not taken or passed the prerequisites for, or had already taken and passed, I asked, “What have they been doing all summer (as well as, “Does WCHS even have a guidance department?”). When I learned that, two weeks into the school year, WCHS students had not yet been assigned books because they had not yet been assigned lockers to store them in and could not be expected to schlep seven classes worth of books around with them all day, I asked, “What have they been doing all summer?” Finally, here, Ms. Moore provides the answer: They have been busy rigging the student council constitution bylaws without the encumbrance of that pesky student involvement. Well done Ms. Moore, an excellent use of your time. I pray that the students have the fortitude to overcome the ineptitude of the administration.

posted by: Wooster Street Resident on September 16, 2011 5:35pm Let’s do not forget that Peggy Moore is a BIG campaign contributor, and because of her ability to funnel votes and campaign money she feels untouchable.

posted by: brutus2011 on September 16, 2011 5:37pm Am I the only one who believes that NHPS is run by an entrenched power interest as a result of 18 years of the city hall administration? Why are we talking about CT SDE regulations or even CT Assembly statutes? The current incarnation of NHPS will find a way around anything, including the law, if it does not serve their management style and interests. New leaders are required. When the current superintendent retires in a few years, those successors he is installing as we speak will continue the NHPS authoritarian system. Nothing substantive will change. The entire management of NHPS, including the Teacher’s Union, must be changed. The only effective chance to do this is at the polls. A new Mayor hopefully means a new NHPS

posted by: Aly Heimer on September 16, 2011 5:47pm Right on Marie! I also remember Ms. Moore from Betsy Ross, where student government didn’t have the power to do or say anything. And I loved participating in after school programs at Cross. It is a shame that they’ve tried to shut down this group when this young man, Isaiah, seems very well respected by his peers, and has developed his own agenda of what is in the best interest of the students. His protesting at City Hall should be commended, not punished by people who are afraid of losing a portion of their paycheck so that there are more academic supplies in the school. Having met Isaiah on many occasions, all I want to say to him is: Don’t give up. You are clearly in the right and are going places. Don’t let this get you down.

posted by: Dottie on September 16, 2011 5:51pm It is important to help them learn how to advocate and to challenge them to think through their advocacy. I don’t want to think that the city’s leadership can’t appreciate the desire of youth to advocate for causes they believe are just. This is the United States. A truly teachable moment might have been missed here. I would encourage Isaiah and others students to run for office in the new paradigm.

posted by: Responses to some of the postings on September 16, 2011 6:42pm I looked at the school website, which has a link called “School Governance Council.” This is probably the group that a couple of posters have said is required. There are minutes of a few meetings, the last of which says that there was going to be a meeting on September 7. Does anyone know if that meeting was held and if we can expect minutes to be posted soon? While I don’t know the membership of the student council that was just disbanded, I am willing to accept that it was disproportionately Caucasian and disproportionately “high end” academically. Accepting that the council should be representative of the school, I agree with the poster who said that the principal should have given the council the opportunity to restructure itself. Instead, the heavy-handed approaches continue, and no one is stopping the principal. I know of no school that has a principal who has assumed so much control, and I know it isn’t good. There must be a very high level of fear in that school, and that is not a good environment for learning. It must also not be a good environment for parental involvement, too, because the parents were unable to find candidates for parents’ club officers when they wanted to have an election at the end of the school year. Question: Did the principal ever sit down at last year’s student council meetings to discuss her concerns? Question: Can we draw a parallel to the principal’s intention not to allow the valedictorian and salutatorian to speak at last year’s graduation because she didn’t consider them representative of the school? Fortunately, someone stopped her from doing that. Question: If the council is being punished for not having the adviser present at its meetings, isn’t that the adviser’s fault? Isn’t he paid a stipend to work with the students? Question: Does anyone see a pattern of growing abuse of power? Question: Does the “education mayor” think that this is the way to educate students so that they become well informed citizens?

posted by: VD on September 16, 2011 6:46pm It’s depressing when a principal puts her self at opposition to and insults a portion of the student body by labeling them “elite”. In Ms. Moore’s view these kids need to be taken down a peg. In this case, “elite” means high achieving and highly involved with the school after class. It’s just crazy, particularly when coupled with the mandate for school change and higher test scores, to show so much contempt towards this category of students (who come from all background, by the way). Even worse, I’m sure it will be allowed to continue unchecked.

posted by: anonymous on September 16, 2011 7:20pm Actually, if one had been present at last year’s student council campaign speeches, one would have heard two of Ms Moore’s described “elitist” candidates enumerate their plans to revamp student council into an inclusive organization. One of these candidates was even voted into office on the basis of this very campaign. In fact, the grail that Ms Moore is now claiming to be her own was very eloquently laid out by these two candidates. More to the point, theirs did hers one better. She proposes to include all students by having them be involved via their homerooms, yet these two candidates (whose slogan was “Don’t just bring us your problems, be part of the solution) proposed including students via the newly instituted “advisory” system. Why? Because not everyone has a homeroom, but just about every student is mandated to be part of an advisory group.

Shame on Ms Moore for firstly, plagiarizing students’ ideas and claiming them as her own, and then for denouncing the very architects of the plan. Shame on her for missing yet another “teachable moment’, as others have claimed, instead feeding her raging, insatiable insecurities by stomping on all those under her. She should take a lesson from students who, although busy with a myriad of other interests, still want to take the time to help make our school a better place. To paraphrase our 35th president (oh yea- another elitist, I suppose), we asked not what our school could do for us but what we could do for our school.

It’s rather unfortunate that Isaiah Lee’s much-publicized personal protests have overshadowed the more moderate student council’s efforts to effect change at WCHS, and that Ms Moore has chosen to snuff the enthusiasm of all students on the council actually eager to pitch in and make a difference. Also abominable…taking the design of the “new” student council out of sight of those willing to work on and in this system. When we were clearly available and willing to be a part of the change, why not invite us to participate in the renovation project instead of handing it to us as a fait accompli? Maybe we could have learned something about the process. That is the purpose of school, isn’t it -to facilitate learning?

posted by: Curious on September 16, 2011 7:30pm If the pat council were really the best representatives of their classmates, then they should have no problem being elected as reps for their homerooms, and stand a good chance of being re-elected as officers. It’s not like they were banned. This sounds like the whole process was made more open. I don’t see how anyone can argue about that.

posted by: Cross parent on September 16, 2011 8:31pm I find Ms. Moore’s comment about “a group of elitist kids” terribly disturbing. My daughter was very involved in student council last year. Whatever “elitist” means, we don’t have a lot of money, my husband and I are not doctors or lawyers, and we don’t live in one of New Haven’s better neighborhoods. My daughter does well because she works very hard. But it sounds like the principal is making assumptions based on how a kid looks on the surface. Last year’s student council wasn’t an exclusive club. It just wasn’t. Any student could have come to the meetings, and students who chose to naturally ended up working together and getting to know each other. They put free time into the blood drives, an adopt-a-family drive during the holidays, a stop-smoking initiative, helped with a student health fair, held a diversity forum, and worked toward getting a student on the city board of education. So I have to take issue with the comment that they had “no real goals or set direction.” How did she miss all of this? If I understand it correctly, two of these students are in the same homeroom this year, so one will not even be able to participate under the new rules. These are seniors who have been putting hours of their time into this since they were freshmen, they are student leaders, and it sounds like all they are getting for that is criticism from the principal.

posted by: James Doss-Gollin on September 16, 2011 9:07pm Although I’m one of the students Ms Moore took a shot at , calling me elitist [I was student council VP last year and the year before], I’m glad to hear that she has finally decided that having students involved in the school helps everyone out. This is a format that the student council has supported for a long time because it’s a good way to get more kids involved. Although she seems to have us painted as a group of sneaky masterminds who conspired to take control of the school, we spent a significant amount of our time last year trying to find ways to incorporate more kids into the student council—including having a representative from each homeroom, an idea Ms Moore shot down (probably because it came from students.)

At the same time as I’m happy to hear that Cross is finally making a transition to a student council that represents every homeroom, I have to wonder why Ms Moore is doing this. It’s hard not to wonder if it’s a political decision, since she hasn’t tried hard to hide her dislike of Isaiah Lee. When it was clear he was going to win our student council elections last year, she set new ground rules for how the elections had to be run (something not in the constitution she mentioned.) When Isaiah won the elections we held, she nullified them because there was no administrator present (the constitution doesn’t mention a need for one.) Now one has to ask whether she is disbanding the student council because she believes in student involvement or because she wants to keep Isaiah from taking leadership positions within the school.

I hate to be cynical, even against a principal who both takes credit for the success of her students and bashes them as “elitist.” I want what’s best for Cross, because that’s the place that has been my home for four years and will always be my answer when people ask me “where did you go to school.” I love the promise of having more student involvement at Cross, which is one of the concrete solutions that can really help solve the VERY REAL problems we have there. I also am very proud of Isaiah, who has shown a lot of class, maturity, and growth and I give him a lot of props for being classy even when the “adults” aren’t living up to the standard they set for him. I just hope that politics can stay out of Cross so that we can focus on teaching, learning, and making sure that everyone in New Haven gets a shot at a great education.

posted by: Anonymous on September 16, 2011 9:09pm I find Mister Jone’s comment infuriating. As someone committed to democratic values, I find it unsettling when someone in a position of power suddenly disbands a group of hardworking students and tries to enforce her own new organization. This is especially appalling for an educator such as Ms. Moore. Her closing quote basically states that students who don’t like the new rules should get used to disappointment, hardly the words you want to hear from a principal who should be encouraging her students. Furthermore, Mister Jones’ description of the former council as “a clique of 25 kids anointing themselves—oops, volunteering—to be the student council,” is inaccurate and spiteful. These students didn’t step forward on account of ego, but because they genuinely wanted to help their school. Anyone could join student council, and the students that were there really wanted to be.

posted by: Concerned parent on September 16, 2011 9:28pm To those who may not like the new rules, Moore advised, “There are a lot of things in life as you grow older that you won’t like.”

What an inspiring comment! I hope she won’t be speaking at graduation.

posted by: Gary Doyens on September 16, 2011 11:04pm Sadly, and once again, I’m underwhelmed and deeply disappointed by a dictorial, unreasonable and largely class conscience principal who is overly concerned with the non-performers, disengaged and irresponsible segment of the student population. She is intent on dumbing down the standards, diluting personal achievement in favor of her version of inclusiveness and representation. It is a twisted view likely rooted in some sort of personal issue. It is again another sorry example of what we have seen before - racist, irresponsible leadership by Peggy Moore. ... Wilbur Cross is a drop out factory with a 50% real graduation rate and a large number of students don’t even take the CMTs. Moore canceled the student elections and now, she disbands the student council because once again, it “doesn’t represent the school and its run by elitists.” Over the summer, she downgraded the independent study and college course advisor and coordinator’s position to part time. She also forced out a long time employee. The program is now in disarray and getting our students in the college program is FUBAR. In making her changes, my sources say she made it clear she has no interest in the honors or AP programs and doesn’t put much value in the ISS or college course work by WC students either. My child is involved in all of these programs. For the amount of taxes and fees I pay in this city, one of the very few things I get for all that money is a half ass education. It seems that Moore should care about that. If she doesn’t, then Moore should be fired immediately. I’m sick and tired of paying for programs in this city that are half baked, never thought out and where we are just puttin warm bodies with no background in the task to which they’ve alleged to have some expertise. This is a prime example of what is wrong in this city - from the mayor’s position to Mayo’s to Moore’s. Incompetence and lack of real concern at every level and it plays out in bold print at Wilbur Cross. This is a pattern of behavior that is unacceptable. To say I’m disgusted is an understatement. And of course, DeStefano will say nothing because his entire re-election program is based on Promise - which is nothing but a myth and a PR stunt. And when asked about it, minimalist Mayo will only support his long time friend. Its time to clean out this patronage cesspool of low performers. We deserve better. We’re damn sure paying for it.

posted by: Tom Burns Isaiah—if you really believe in something, you don’t need a title or position to change things for the better—keep meeting on your own with your brother and sister student change leaders and continue to espouse the ideas you believe in——-otherwise the establishment wins and nothing will ever change——I am sure that other students believe in you and the actions you have taken so far—-don’t let them down——and remember to do everything in the spirit of love and community (both to your followers and your adversaries)—I wish you Godspeed young man—-Tom

posted by: There are 8 Adminstrators on September 17, 2011 7:58am This school’s leadership of EIGHT full-time administrators (supported by a few consultants) can’t get organized enough to begin a school year? Mrs. Moore can’t use the “I was appointed late in the summer” as she did for much of last year. The preparation for what happened this fall was entirely under her watch. On another point, the “elitist” students she refers to are her students, too, and they are the students whose academic strength keeps Cross from being just another urban high school. Yet, her “elitist” comment suggests that she regards them with disdain. Lesson to be learned: You should value all of your students, not only the majority. If this school had a largely White population, with a small minority of Black and Hispanic students, we would expect the minority students to be regarded as important. However, since the majority of the students are Black or Hispanic, we should expect the White students to be treated as important, not as an annoyance.

posted by: Curious on September 17, 2011 9:24am Didn’t the independent write this SAME article in the middle of the summer already? Minus the picture of the “oh so politically involed” Lee ...Stop trying to stir up controversy and let this principal run her school for what it is supposed to be… An educational facility, not a place for students to try and run the city from their silly little student council. Find some real news to write about next time. [Note: The previous story was about the cancellation of student council elections when a certain slate won. This story is about the council itself being disbanded and reconstituted. We will continue to follow up this story and other stories about how students participate in school and civic life. That’s news in our opinion. So are the decisions of school officials about how to deal with students who speak up.]

posted by: Yimski on September 17, 2011 1:45pm So, the lesson the students receive in this situation seems to be that if you care, if you get involved, if you swim against the youth culture of apathy, disregard for civic involvement, and discouragement of academic achievement, then we will not support you. We will call you elitist. We, as educators, will be intimidated by your honesty, your intellectual curiousity, your civic engagement, and your audacity to believe that you can make a difference. Don’t worry, Isaiah, you’re headed for higher things in life, but there will be people like your principal along the way, trying to bring you down. Pay them no heed.

posted by: Cross Student on September 17, 2011 6:52pm This was a very unfortunate event; but these even will never cease to occur if New-Haven residents don’t speak up. If you want to help the students at Wilbur cross you can do one of these three things: Write a letter of complaint to the superintendent of schools/Mayor Destefano, or Peggy Moore. Call in downtown and voice your complaints Protest!!!!

posted by: Ora How sad when this type of control and in general censorship enters into a school.

posted by: cross student on September 17, 2011 8:52pm “Curious” i find your comments to be very ill-informed. School not just a place of scholastic education, but tangible civic, political, and socio-economic teachings. Adults constantly complian about how oblivious kids are to politics, government, and the economy. And when we kids articulate our concerns about the community, if adults disagree, we should be silenced! Let me ask you something “curious”, do you believe in our nations constitutional rights? Well if you do, its probably best i let you in on a secret…...they apply to students too!

posted by: "Curious" is mistaken because Cross isn't the prin on September 17, 2011 8:57pm The principal of a school doesn’t own the school and doesn’t have the right to determine how students ought to think or organize themselves, that is, unless the students break rules in doing so. That was not the case here. The school exists for the students, not for the benefit of adults who are obsessed with control. Moreover, student organizations are vehicles by which students have opportunities to learn responsibility, cooperation, interdependence and civic involvement. It matters not that adults are sometimes uncomfortable with what the students say and do. Were I the principal of that school, I would consider it part of the job to know where I must draw the line and where I have to allow students to develop their own sense of identity.

posted by: cedarhillresident on September 17, 2011 10:00pm what to complain…you can not do it to the very people that are allowing this. Try writing Charlene Russell-Tucker, MSM, RD

Associate Commissioner of Education

Division of Family and Student Support Services

Phone: 860-807-2004

.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) not sure if she is the right one but her dept deals with “RBA enables policymakers, funders, and program administrators to identify how well they are doing in achieving a particular quality of life result and where they might need to make changes. “If you keep doing what you are doing, you will keep getting what you are getting.” “

posted by: Concerned for this city on September 17, 2011 10:26pm Seriously, what can we do—as New Haven citizens—to get this woman out of our schools? She cares about nothing but control. She is not the least bit interested in education. It was that way at BRAMS and it’s that way at Cross.

posted by: Concerned for this city on September 17, 2011 10:43pm Thank you, Cedarhillresident, for that link. Please, everybody, let’s send e-mails to the state to look into this Ms. Moore. She clearly has no interest in Education, and no business running a New Haven school.

posted by: robn on September 17, 2011 11:02pm It sounds like MsMoores decision has little to do with democracy and lots to do with censoring a group of students who dared question her efficacy and salary. To the students I advise that the lack of willingness to examine this school administration has been, so far, Extended as far as the mayors office. A pressure point beyond this office has been exposed in these comments. Exploit it.

posted by: DISTRESSED! on September 17, 2011 11:50pm Cross student says: “...these events will never cease to occur if New-Haven residents don’t speak up. If you want to help the students at Wilbur cross you can do one of these three things: ...#3:Protest!!!! I say skip the phone calls to Central office and Peggy Moore and go straight to PROTEST! Everyone who believes in democracy should organize in a massive protest against what is going on at Wilbur Cross High. All activists, parents, community leaders, students, and citizens who believe that school should be a place where real education is about enlightenment; where students should be encouraged to be civically engaged and be actively involved, MUST stand up to this tyranny. Not to do so would be to fail our children. No less an authority than Aristotle said: “All who have meditated on the art of governing mankind have been convinced that the fate of empires depends on the education of youth.” (Aristotle) Education is the most important factor in the evolution of both the individual and society. Schools need to educate our children to be responsible, caring individuals but also to be a part of the broader Society. They need to be taught how to interpret, understand and use critical thinking skills for determining the Truth for themselves. The statements made by Mrs. Moore about “elitist” students are shocking and disturbing. What she is proposing now is what the Student Council at Wilbur Cross proposed last year, and that she opposed. It is essentially also what the CT State Dept of Education (SDE) announced must be done by Nov. 1, 2011. This is called School Governance Councils. At the SDE site it says: School Governance Councils (councils) provide a remarkable opportunity for Connecticut schools to engage with families and community members in the essential dialogue about student achievement and preparing all students for success.

There are specific guidelines to be followed as set out by the SDE; this is not anything that evolved from Peggy Moore’s leadership brain. You can read about it at the SDE web site linked here: http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/SGC

• Guidance for School Governance Councils:

• Conducting the Election and Nomination Processes [PDF] [DOC] Every parent with a child at Wilbur Cross needs to see to it that this happens. Stand UP to Tyranny wherever you encounter it.

posted by: trainspotter on September 18, 2011 5:51am What Ms. Moore should have said is: “There are a lot of things in life as you grow older that you won’t like and… you should work tirelessly and never give up the fight to right a wrong or rectify an obvious injustice.”

posted by: lizvitale on September 18, 2011 7:48am Probably easier said than done, but those so-called elite students that don’t have alot vested into Cross should consider leaving. Take your talent and brains to a school that will celebrate them.

I suspect this type of leadership (if you can call it that) will be a deterrent to prospective AP students and familes, and eventually the program will suffer. What a shame that she is allowed to operate like this unchecked.

posted by: aharpe on September 18, 2011 7:58am it is quite possible for a student council to be both racially diverse and elite (elite simply means having more power/resources/influence than others). Based on my readings of the various NHI pieces over time, I had some sympathy with the view that the council was an elite institution that needed to become more inclusive and representative. However James Doss-Gollin you have helpfully explained that the council was working out ways to be more representative and inclusive. This would have been a fantastic opportunity for teachers and students to work together to that end.

posted by: William Hosley on September 18, 2011 9:48am This is the kind of imperious garbage that - thankfully - will turn the rising generation of talented 10ths center right. You can’t experience this and not realize the correlation between arrogance and 50 years of one party rule. There is NOTHING wrong with CT (or its cities) political diversity and competition can’t fix. The idea that New Haven chooses its mayor via one party’s primary - is disgraceful.

posted by: Cross teacher on September 18, 2011 11:30am Cross students:

As a Cross teacher, I am proud of the way you have conducted yourselves on this site and throughout this whole ordeal. You speak and write articulately, persuasively and professionally. You have not lowered yourselves to some of the depths to which adults have sunk. I am proud to teach at a school where the students are politically engaged; you care deeply about your education and the education of your peers. Please know that your teachers support you and think the world of you.

Another note: make this new student council format work for you. Set your own goals and your own agenda; don’t let adults tell you what your priorities should be as a student government group. Use this new format as a way to include new voices, and do not let your voices be silenced.

Best of luck!! We support you!!

posted by: to the Editor on September 18, 2011 11:33am Maybe the Independent should start a regular feature through which New Haven students could report on their own schools. Assuming that none of these schools have within themselves anything like a free press.

posted by: disgusting and shameful on September 18, 2011 12:48pm This woman CANNOT be an educator! How is she being allowed to create such a hostile environment attacking the students and teachers at Cross??? Where is meadow street? Wake up Mayo-Moore is behaving like an ignorant, power wielding dictator. How is she defining elitist???? White students? rich students? Privileged students? The students involved in the council are a diverse group (demographically). They are indeed an elite group in terms of their high level of commitment to their school community, academics, and commitment to their futures! If the council could benefit from recruiting less involved, disconnected students- then task the student council with recruitment!!!!! if the student council has been without goals and direction then get a new advisor! Youth leadership groups need strong, educated advisors with knowledge of how to promote effective youth leadership. Moore seems to harbor contempt for the hardworking students. Could it be that she believes that working on the school’s deficits and reaching out to the disenfranchised students means alienating and attacking all other students? Moore’s actions are shameful, misdirected, and ignorant. Her leadership at Cross is divisive, punitive and misguided at best. She should take some tips from Hillhouse principal who is doing amazing, positive things by embracing students and faculty and creating a TEAM environment. Moore needs to GO!

posted by: Ellis Copeland on September 18, 2011 1:04pm This woman should be fired immediately and should be ineligible to collect unemployment. She iS exactly the problem with public “education.” And “they” wonder why people who can afford to send their kids to private school.

posted by: School Climate on September 18, 2011 3:13pm The district spends a great deal of time and money developing school climate surveys, but where there are severe climate issues, neither central office nor building leadership seem ready or willing to address them. What good, then, are the surveys? What is described in this article and in the subsequent postings is a terrible school climate, one that will undermine the reform efforts of the school. Teachers have done an impressive job developing a student advisory program, an initiative that can establish many beneficial student-adult relationships. But will it? Since last fall, the actions of one person in the building, Mrs. Moore, have been antithetical to student advisory because they demonstrate disdain for the students. Anyone who thinks I am mistaken should consider: When has Mrs. Moore ever engaged in conversations with students? When has she tried to work with the student council or with any other student organization? When has she considered opinions other than her own? When has she earnestly tried to engage in open discussions with even the adults in the building? Unless I am not well informed, the answer to all of these questions is the same—never. The school system is supposed to be governed by a board of education, but I don’t hear anything from them. Dr. Mayo has said that what happens at Cross affects the entire school district, but I am not aware of anything he has done to address the very serious problems at Cross. The mayor prides himself in school reform and school construction accomplishments, but I don’t know of anything he has said or done to address the growing problems at the largest school in the NHPS. The parents have apparently given up dealing with Mrs. Moore because no one wants to run for office in the parents’ club. Maybe they feel the sting of her reference to certain students (and, by extension, their parents) as “elitists.” Mrs. Moore, I strongly object to what you are doing to Cross. I hope you know that some of the best teachers at the school have absolutely no respect for you, but they fear that you will stop at nothing to punish them if they openly disagree. Knowing these same teachers, I believe that their thinking can change, but your behavior and attitude must change first. If you can’t see the light, it’s because you refuse to open your eyes.

posted by: cedarhillresident on September 18, 2011 6:16pm One misconception that this women lead into was that it was a non inclusive group. I ask everyone, that has groups that they work with (greenspace, anti violence, peace groups, funds for cure groups ect.) We all know to well, how hard it is to get people involved and when they do, to keep them on. The principle did not say how these kids did do their damnedest to get others involved. But they like many of us had the same hard time. This is not a sports group or cheerleaders or drama… it is politics. I remember when I was in HS this was NOT the group we were lining up to be in.

She (the principle) tried to present the lack of participation as non inclusive….I am sure she is FULLY aware that is not the case at all. She just twisted it to try to push her sad agenda.

posted by: brutus2011 on September 18, 2011 7:01pm I do not support the Cross administration’s handling of this issue. However, it is short-sighted, I believe, to heap all the blame on the Cross principal. This kind of authoritarian and repressive decision comes from the very top of NHPS management. The Cross principal is really only following orders within the extreme top-down management model of NHPS. Remember that “A fish rots from the head.” If the servant (Cross principal) is disorderly, it is because the master (head of NHPS) is so.

posted by: David Elkin-Ginnetti on September 18, 2011 7:06pm @To The Editor: Not exactly the case. Wilbur Cross does have a student newspaper called The Proclamation. You can find back issues of it on the Wilbur Cross website, and we’ll soon be starting up a blog of our own. We will surely be reporting on this. Ms. Moore has not yet censored any of our stories, but who knows how long that will last.

posted by: @ DISTRESSED! on September 18, 2011 9:54pm Moore was supposed to establish the governance council at Cross by Jan. 15, 2011. She put it off (and off) until late spring. It now dies a quiet death, with help from central office. The SIG money ($750,000 last year, this year, and next) is extra federal money given to states to assist chronically underperforming schools like Cross. After you contact the state dept. of education, contact the federal Dept. of education and let them know you are displeased with how Moore is spending our tax dollars.

posted by: Gretchen Pritchard on September 18, 2011 10:12pm With the excellent Kermit Carolina now serving as the principal at Hillhouse, it would be only appropriate if this so-called “elite” group that has been reflexively choosing Wilbur Cross for decades, would start opting for Hillhouse instead.

posted by: JMS on September 19, 2011 6:43am Our son is currently in 5th grade, doing well and enjoying New Haven Public Schools. Our thinking all along has been that he might end up at Wilbur Cross for high school. We had been hearing good things about Cross for years under the leadership of the previous principal. But more recently and especially after reading this article (and others) as well as getting direct feedback from friends and relatives who have or are current students at Cross we are quickly exploring other options. And since we can’t afford private school these options now include moving which would be a huge hassle and tragic for us because we love living in New Haven and have all our lives. But if Peggy Mooore is still running Wilbur Cross when our son finishes 8th grade there is no chance we will send him there. From every report I have heard from every student, parent and teacher who has encountered her she is a plague upon that school and it’s students. She represents everything that is wrong with school administration gone awry. Hopefully we will find another NH Public school option that works for our son or Peggy Moore will be long gone by the time we need to make this decision. JMS

posted by: Taxpayer on September 19, 2011 9:38am It is amazing how narrow minded, down right mean people get in positions of authority and make a lot of money. As a New Haven tax payer, I am in total agreement with Lee that there should less money spent on administrators and more on teachers and teaching tools. Ms. Moore’s actions show she is very threatened by Lee and as far as I am concerned, Lee and others on the old student council have shown themselves to be the true adults in in this situation. Ms. Moore, I think it is time to disband the administrators at Cross so the staff can be more inclusive!

posted by: democracyandeducation on September 19, 2011 9:45am @JMS “...if Peggy Mooore is still running Wilbur Cross when our son finishes 8th grade there is no chance we will send him there.” I have several kids working their way through Cross. It’s unlikely that Moore will be there when your child is ready for high school. Since we started at Cross, 2006, she’s already the third principal, and there was a fourth shortly before we arrived. The principal’s position at Cross appears to be a sinecure for administrators approaching retirement or as the last step before a no contact with students desk job at headquarters. What I’d like is a seasoned leader who could commit to a 10-year tenure, a nod to Hill House again. Studies tend to show that the quality of the principal is a prime predictor of school performance, and that involves an active role in the educational life of the institution. I’ll leave it to others to grade the current administration, but many of the institutions in the school are, well, institutionalized, relatively beyond the reach and control of any principal. These include the, I’ll admit, the elite Honors, AP, and independent study programs. Families that can choose alternatives to inner-city public schools—the suburbs, private schools—but who are committed to urban life don’t want to sacrifice their children’s education. I’ll admit that I wouldn’t send my kids to Cross were it not for the academic standards in the elite programs. But would it be better if there were no families like mine at Cross? My kids get to go to a school that is more like the world they will live in. The bottom-line problem is improving education from the start of preschool for everyone so that the elite program can expand, and to have the highest expectations—and the resources to meet those expectations of every student at Cross, (“Stand and Deliver”). My children’s friends from places like Madison and Woodbridge think the city is way cooler than where they live their ticky-tack boxes on the hillside lives, and wish they too could simply walk downtown to the happening yogurt spots.

posted by: FIX THE SCHOOLS on September 19, 2011 10:41am Putting aside the whole debate about student rights etc., to me, the most distressing thing about this article is contained in the post from WCHS Class of 2028 Parent. The NHI should do a story about the lack of preparedness that there may have been as WCHS came back to school this semester. Could the circumstances have really been that bad? And if so, what was the reaction from downtown? WHat were the factors that caused allof the chaos? Why do parents stand for this? When folks read about his lack of preparedness for opening day, does it ever think we need to change our governance structure? Not just changing up the people - but the schools’ governance structure. Accountability begins with us.

posted by: A "Teaching Moment?" on September 19, 2011 12:23pm Now more than ever, the students at WCHS need their parents and other responsible adults to step forward and show them the way to right this terrible injustice that is being perpetrated by the administrators at their school.

Ms. Moore doesn’t “own” that school! She serves at the pleasure, and in trust for the well-being of the Cross school community. Yet she has embarked upon a reign of terror, of which the student council take-over is only one instance of a complete and utter disdain for the students and parents that make up her community. Ask any teacher at Cross. Ask about how the AP, Honors and Independent Study programs have been gutted. Apparently, Ms. Moore’s ideas on navigating the Achievement Gap tend mainly towards taking steps to lower the achievement levels of the high performing students, rather than taking steps to improve the performance of the lesser performing students. If you chase away the “elitist” students and take away their educational resources, the Achievement Gap will disappear in no time. Go Figure!!

posted by: fearless on September 19, 2011 12:40pm kids getting a very bad lesson here…these “elites” are now labeled negatively by their Principal…and ANY faculty MUST FOLLOW THE POLICY, OR THEY ARE LESS THAN ... IN NHPS…sounds like the school is going to have lots of problems, when goodstudents care PUBLICLY TARNISHED BY THE PRINCIPAL BAD POLICIES BY BAD PRINCIPALS SUPERVISED BY ... MAYO AND KING JOHN!!!! BYE BYE IN NOVEMBER….VOTE AGAINST DESTEFANO…53@ OF DEMOCRATS DID NOT VOTE FOR HIM IN THE PRIMARY…GET RID OF KING JOHN AND MAYO IS GONE AS WELL,SOON TO BE FOLLOWED BY THE ... PRINCIPAL MOORE

posted by: anon on September 19, 2011 12:51pm What happened to the city’s “gag order” about city staff speaking to the press? Moore should be removed from her position for her comments, which are unprofessional and extraordinarily damaging to students’ well being. When is the contract for this person up for renewal?

posted by: SteveOnAvon on September 19, 2011 1:33pm While the article is disturbing, the avalanche of comments critical of this anti-educational action by Ms. Moore is very inspiring. Comment after comment, people are expressing outrage at the ridiculousness of the situation in words far more eloquent than those I might muster up. I certainly will be writing/emailing Cross & City Hall, and encouraging friends, neighbors, and colleagues to do the same. To Isaiah & other students who have been negatively affected by their principal’s unfortunate misunderstanding of what the word “education” means: Keep on struggling. Throughout your life, you will be in the minority, but take some solace knowing that the minority is usually right in the long run. Good luck in all your endeavors.

posted by: CrossStudent on September 19, 2011 3:09pm Wilbur Cross Students are not being given credit for their awareness and action. Throughout several meetings at the end of the year we were attempting to both revise our constitution and increase student involvement throughout the school. Specific plans were put in place and carried out over the summer. The constitution was split up among members present at the last meeting for them to revise over the summer so that the council would be in a good position for perfecting it at the start of the year. Several members suggested a very specific plan where President and Vice-President would go to the newly founded advisory groups, introduce themselves, talk about student council, and then each advisory group would pick one person to go to student council meetings. This is practically identical to Ms. Moore’s plan, the only difference is that it was created by students. Because, you see, we too see lack of diversity and involvement. We too see the outdated nature of our constitution. We too see that Isaiah is rash and outspoken. But beyond all those similarities, WE see the injustice of Ms. Moore’s actions. And this, along with the fact that while she sits at a desk and shuts down student groups our disbanded members raise money for schools in Madagascar, sue restaurants that are under-paying immigrants, and research corruption in voting (oh, the irony), makes us ten times more qualified to run our own school.

posted by: WCHS PARENT on September 19, 2011 3:32pm According to dictionary.com, “Elitist” is defined as: “(of a person or class of persons) considered superior by others or by themselves, as in intellect, talent, power, wealth, or position in society.” Maybe, I am pointing out the obvious, but I am afraid the only person who is fitting this definition is Moore. ... Anyone who makes decisions about a group under her headship, who feels inclined to neither discuss this issue with the group or notify them of her decision is clearly “elitist.” ... she considers anyone with the where-with-all to go through any form of an election process to be elitist. Hence, I would then consider that she thinks the same of our government which not only has been paying her…but also gives her the freedom to make an absolute mockery of the position of Principal of WCHS. And not to leave Al Meadows out of the picture. As the “longtime advisor” to the student council, he was clearly absent at the wheel. If Moore feels that the student council “ had no real goals or set directions,” the person responsible for this is clearly the advisor who is there to guide the students. And Meadow’s comment that there were students “who last year put immense individual effort into directing coat drives and blood drives.” clearly reflects this “lack of goals and directions.” To the students of the student council, she has indeed taught two valuable lessons…

1) When someone in power over you plays such an idiotic move as Moore has, know this is not about you but rather the fragile psychopathology the person in power.

2) “Education” and “intelligence” are not the same thing. As a parent of one of the students so crassly described as “elitist”, I ... would suggest considering a profession as a sanitation engineer. This way she can throw out real trash rather that the opinions and persons who are at odds with her view of the world.

posted by: To: anon on September 19, 2011 4:21pm Mrs. Moore doesn’t have to have her contract renewed. She will continue as a board of education employee until she decides to leave, unless she is terminated because her evaluator considers her performance unacceptable or for other appropriate cause. Terminating her employment would require a vote by the board of education.

posted by: JMS on September 19, 2011 4:40pm @ democracyandeducation, Thanks for your inside perspective. When I was a student at Cross (‘84-‘88) we had one steady principal who also happened to be my principal at Sheridan Middle School. He moved over when I did and stayed on for several years after I left (not 100% sure how long). He was also my little league baseball coach and we remain friends now. I wonder if Peggy Moore has that kind of long term mentor relationship with any of her students? Some how I doubt it. I feel a similar good vibe with my son’s principal at Edgewood. She does and excellent job. And for the record I have no intention of moving out of New Haven to the suburbs. Not a chance. I was just expressing our level of frustration when reading about some of this stuff. JMS

posted by: @SteveOnAvon on September 19, 2011 4:55pm That is a great Idea! Please everyone try to send a letter or make a phone call to the superintendent’s officer and especially the mayors office. Cross doesn’t have a PTO, so we students need the support of the community.

posted by: Another parent of an "elite" student on September 19, 2011 5:06pm I wish we could wipe the slate clean and have an outsider come in, hold a meeting with students interested in student council, and work with them on a new plan. A fresh start. It would be better if the principal was not involved, because the current plan—and any plan she comes up with will always have to be partly a way to try and recover her reputation. And the bad feelings will be there all year. We need an outsider—I don’t now who—but an outsider. As far as other leadership and organization problems at the school,well parents don’t all have time to jump in and take action. Many are going to seek out other options.

posted by: anothercrossparent on September 19, 2011 6:03pm “Ask about how the AP, Honors and Independent Study programs have been gutted.” Ok, I’ll answer. I fail to see any gutting of the AP program. Actually, the AP program has been expanding. Moore’s negative influence has more to do with morale than actually dismantling honors, AP, or independent studies.

posted by: Anon on September 19, 2011 8:07pm both ap and issp coordinators were sent to work elsewhere

posted by: Bottom Line on September 19, 2011 10:16pm The bottom line is, this woman is NO GOOD for Cross! She made it known she dud nit want to be there, she is far from personable and likes to “lead” by intimidation. There is no reason why she should not be reprimanded, publicly, for calling the students at Cross “elitist.”. But, I’m sure good ole Reggie will protect her as he always does. I feel everyone should file formal complaints with the state department of education and while you’re at it, file one about Reggie too!

posted by: richgetricher on September 19, 2011 10:17pm It’s very sad that our kids are getting their first taste of “New Haven-style democracy” at such a young age. Of course they should have at least been properly informed and consulted. History lesson: the kids should know that one of the main reasons America broke away from England was because the King would dissolve the colonial legislatures whenever it suited him. Stay involved and keep standing up for what you believe in.

posted by: A parent on September 19, 2011 11:23pm As a parent, this was horrible in the spring and it’s horrible to relive it. It’s time for a response from Dr. Mayo. We need to hear what he has to say about this. I hope the Independent is working on that.

posted by: Moore is Union President on September 20, 2011 10:54am ... Ms. Peggy Moore is giving a black eye to the great work that teachers have done in leading school reform in New Haven.

posted by: Nicky on September 20, 2011 11:27am The students which were elected to be on student council the year before should have been notified of the changed being made to the organization.

Other than that I think the new rules which require 70 homerooms to elect a student to be its representative are smart. Cross High School is huge! Those 70 kids will make up the student council, which will then elect officers. Sounds like an organized plan.

posted by: Thomas Jackson on September 20, 2011 3:33pm I have often defended New Haven school officials. Most of the time I think Wilbur Cross Principal Peggy Moore is headed in the right direction. For years- no decades - Cross has functioned as two schools within one building. A small AP/honors track have run in parallel with a school for the general student population. At times, all they have shared is an address. Principal Moore deserves praise for trying to change that sorry state of affairs. Unfortunately, Principal Moore has used her desire to change the school’s two-track character as a reason for disbanding the student council, having administrators write a new constitution for the student council, and thereby generating more heat than light. She has also ended up looking more than a little foolish and given those who want to preserve the status quo a valid criticism of her performance. She says, for example, “Student council should not be “a group of elitist kids that say, ‘We run Cross.’” Since when has a student government ever run anything? Seriously? Students “running” Cross? Not in my lifetime. Overstating the power of the student government at Cross undercuts Moore’s efforts to make substantive and long-overdue change. We are told the problem was too few students got involved in student government. Might that reflect the fact that student governments usually have no real power or role aside from serving as window dressing? Might most students today see that a “Student Government Constitution” written by the administration and approved by teacher leaders is unlikely to offer meaningful opportunity to student leaders? Given the circumstances surrounding this process, why would any student trust a process designed and approved by administrators and teachers? The real loss here is the loss of an opportunity to use the process of revising the student council constitution as an opportunity to involve students, parents, teachers and the administration in a shared effort. This process could have provided a forum for discussing the role of student government as well as the larger issue of two schools in one building. Most important, this could have been an example of living up to our words, of living the democratic ideals we are supposed to teach in our public schools. This approach of involving all of the stakeholders in common effort is not new: Dr. James Comer of Yale developed this concept in the New Haven Public Schools several decades ago. Once again, we’ve lost an opportunity for Dr. Colmer’s vision to become reality at Wilbur Cross. “It’s easy to lose sight of progress by focusing only on the negative and highlighting the sensational,” Superintendent Reggie Mayo wrote recently defending Principal Moore. “Everyone wants Wilbur Cross to fulfill its potential and promise. Ms. Moore has made real progress toward that goal.” I take him at his word and understand well that the process of making change often sparks sensational news coverage. Cross, Principal Moore and the New Haven Public Schools would have been better served by an open process involving parents and students. That is the only real way to end elitism at Cross.

posted by: Confused on September 20, 2011 5:09pm @Thomas Jackson and others who refer to the AP/honors program at Cross as a separate track. I’m not sure why the impression remains that Cross is like that. As school receiving Project Opening Doors grant funds http://www.cbia.com/pod/ and other grants before that to increase equity and access in AP classes, Cross has done a tremendous amount to increase the number of students enrolled in AP, particularly those from “underrepresented populations.” While they’ve yet to mirror the population of the school as a whole, the AP program has grown considerably over the past decade. I believe that at least 25% or more of last year’s graduating class had not only taken an AP class but scored a 3 or higher. Very few urban schools can rival the success of the program, success that many AP teachers seek to expand to include more and more non-traditional students. Years ago, Cross had an “honors program” housed on the third floor and kept separate from the larger school. That has not existed for more than a decade. And any student whose parents insist can be placed in honors, and even AP, even if that student has not demonstrate preparedness for the class. Certainly responsible school officials will counsel the student and parents regarding the challenges of taking a class without the requisite preparation, but ultimately the choice remains with the family. That’s what an “open door” policy means. There are reasonable arguments to present on both sides of the debate about Cross’s leadership, but the insistence that Cross’s AP and honors classes represent a small, exclusive band of elites is simply false.

posted by: A "Teaching Moment?" on September 20, 2011 5:52pm For anyone interested, the State Dept of Educ is hosting a Parent Community Forum to Discuss the School Governance Council Legislation requirements to be held at Co-op High School on Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 6:00 p.m.

Community Forum to Learn about the SGC Law

http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/pdf/deps/sgc/NewHaven_SGC_Announcement.pdf According to the SDE site, Cross High School was required to implement the legislation last Jan. 15, 2011. Apparently no progress has been made on that statutory requirement. (I suppose the Principal and Bd. of Educ. was too busy handling the Student Council issue to deal with a statutory mandate.)

posted by: Time to Go on September 20, 2011 6:41pm If Mrs. Moore’s missteps were limited to her decision about dissolving the student council and designing what the adults think ought to be the students’ organization, I might consider it a momentary lapse in judgment and give her a pass. However, this decision is one of a long list of her failures and bad decisions at the school. Several of them have been featured in NHI articles, and many others have been mentioned in blog postings. I won’t repeat them here, except to say that she has a very warped sense of the need to control, even when she doesn’t have the necessary background knowledge (and some would say the necessary disposition) to make the right decisions. Her utter failure to establish positive relationships with students, faculty and parents is yet another disgrace. For some reason, she has decided to attack the “elite” students at Cross. I don’t know why a principal would characterize any of her school community with such sneering disrespect, and I have been there when she has done it. It says more about her than it does about them. A far better approach would be for Mrs. Moore to assure that any student willing to work gets into the AP/honors program and that all necessary supports are provided for them. Mrs. Moore is unhappy and she appears to be resentful at her assignment to Cross. Dr. Mayo should find another job for her.

posted by: Isaiah Lee on September 20, 2011 7:44pm I have some questions for Dr.Mayo, Ms.Moore, and Thomas Jackson; if it is the goal of Ms.Moore and Dr.Mayo to promote inclusiveness why is it that you have yet to advocate for a PTO at cross? Why hasn’tthe governance council that is mandated by the state, have yet to be implemented? And most importantly why where the elections of students of diverse course-loads and whose campaign platforms included ways of attracting more students to the student council(with no documentation supporting this action) NULLIFIED!!! You say that your promoting inclusiveness, but in actuality your covering for the lack of effort and efficiency by administration to bring the students who aren’t on the AP/honors track to that level. Don’t create class divisions at cross, because you need more grant money! Remember!Its those same AP/honors kids who take those precious district assessments of yours.

posted by: HhE on September 21, 2011 1:32am I do not claim to know, but I will admits to doubts. 25 or 10 students in student council? Sounds like the difference between being involved and being a core member. Kind of like a FIRST Robotics team with 25 members, but a half dozen or so that actually build the robot. (When I was in ROTC, I complained to my Dad, the international management expert, how only half of us did the work that was necessary. His response, “That’s about right.”) Every homeroom will have at least one student who wants to do Student Council? How many CMT officers have the job because they were willing to do it? The smart money is against this happening. Seventy members on Student Council? If you think our BoA is too big and unwieldy, try this. Come to think of it, Ms. Moore may be a genius. Well, the way I see it, the NHPS has about nine years to sort out this mess before our family has to choose between Cross and prep school. Now how am I going to be able to afford a Lotus and a Morgan?

posted by: Here's a good idea on September 21, 2011 10:33am The students at Cross can leave tests blank this year. Boycott them. Be absent. Use your limited power to push change. Mr. Lee: Please pick up the book “Rules for Radicals”. There are plenty of ways to bring about change. No passes being given out to students to go to the bathroom: Hold a bean breakfast. Remember that the sidewalk is public property. Chalk is always nice.

posted by: Sad Cross Parent on September 21, 2011 10:49am Let’s correct the record: Cross DID implement a School Governance Council (SGC) late last winter. Elections of 6 parent representatives were held at, I believe, 2nd marking period report card conferences, and 3 subsequent meetings occurred before the end of the school year. Minutes are readily available on the Cross website at http://schools.nhps.net/wcross/ACSchoolgovernance.html. It was a shame, however, that the SGC replaced the previously successful School Planning and Management Team (SPMT), another teacher/staff/parent/student team in the Comer model that’s been used in NHPS schools successfully for many years. However, I have also heard that NHPS has gotten permission (from the state?) to return to SPMT and disband SGC (which seemed to have trouble getting off the ground, in part because of unnecessarily stringent membership requirements). So far this year, though, there has been no public comment from Cross to parents about either the SGC or the SPMT.

posted by: Communication Is Absent on September 21, 2011 11:45am “Sad Cross Parent” said that there was a School Governance Council last year and that parents were elected. Teachers were elected, too. Somehow, though, the students were never elected, even though their membership is also part of the requirement. I’m sure the principal will blame that on the Student Council, but I know last year’s president tried to have an election (required by law) until she was stopped by the principal. The principal was probably afraid of those “elitists,” who might actually dare to make the school administration answer difficult questions. If it is true that the SPMT will be resurrected, why don’t the parents know about it? For that matter, how many staff members know about it? How many students know about it? On the other hand, if it is not true that the SPMT will replace the SGC, why has there been no communication about the next SGC meeting? With 8 administrators for a school of only 1,266 students (I checked the official enrollment this morning, but I suspect that it will be smaller by the time October 1 comes), a reasonable person should expect organization and communication. They don’t even communicate well within the school. To Isaiah: You have been treated very shabbily, and I apologize to you as an adult who knows that. The treatment you have experienced by your school’s principal is an embarrassment to the school district and to the profession. It’s too bad that the superintendent doesn’t recognize this. My advice to you is to keep your head held high and to conduct yourself admirably. Your best revenge is in being dignified, even when you have been treated shamelessly.

posted by: Hamhock 1619 on September 21, 2011 1:29pm Ugh, very disappointed in the W. Cross administration. They’ve had chances to fix this particular situation and have continued to make very poor decisions. What else are they messing up? Hoping this lady is out of there by the time my kid gets to Cross.

posted by: Lynda Faye Wilson on September 21, 2011 3:34pm The newest report on formulating the “STUDENT COUNCIL BODY” SOUNDS VERY WORKABLE. What stands out is more students have a real chance to express both needs and wants for the entire school. It seemingly will be done on a bipartisan basis which is very much democratic. Sorry to say, the earlier comments prior to summer vacation sounded quite power flaunting, inconsiderate,without compassion or passion for the issue at hand or for who the issue ownership belong to. THE STUDENT BODY. Wishing you all a Blessed, cohesive and productive 2011-2012 Year.

posted by: Lynda Faye Wilson on September 21, 2011 4:05pm The statement I’m about to make is directed to principal Peggy Moore. Had I read the entire article, I would have included somehow my following statement. “I am not a highly educated person, but I know this much, a constitution can not be abolished, as if it never existed. In all fairness, a constitution is to be amended, but to abolish it altogether and re-name it rules/policies, is UNCONSTITUTIONAL in itself. So all that played a part in riding the SCHOOL CONSTITUTION was DEMOCRACTIC AS WELL AS UNLAWFUL. The students’ need not be led to believe that this is the way you to do things of this nature. IT’S WRONG, DEAD WRONG.

posted by: Joan Grayson on September 22, 2011 7:14am ... I am appalled. And she makes over $100,000 and is totally unaccountable. Who is the real “elite” in this story? It’s not the students. So now Moore will limit kids who are “too smart” with more pliable kids who won’t attend meetings or be as involved. Yet another example of why hiring, firing and salary decisions should be in the hands of an independent board.