New Position at Plainedge?

[concerned]

I was just reading the classifieds in Newsday this morning (Sunday) and was surprised to see a position in the Education section for Assistant Business Manager/Treasurer. The descrition reads:

Manage all district aqccounting and financial reporting; supervise payroll/purchasing, AP and AR. Maintaing Gender Ledger and subsidiary acounts; prep stqate required financial forms and reports.

So, is this a new position or a replacement? In either case, I guess it doesn't really matter. Tell those kids to keep washing more cars.....we can see where the money they've collected is going.....okay, so that was an unfair shot. But, it is amazing that during a contingency budget, new positions are being filled.

The reality is the position probably is needed. But, did Dr. Burns have an asst? Why didn't they just hire a business manager rather than hire Burns' replacement?

[justfacts]

The response I gave to an e-mail on this topic might be of interest to some.

No matter what - under a Contingency budget the increase from last year of both the Administration plus Programs portion of the budget can't exceed 3.24% of what is was last year and the Administration portion of the budget (where the charges for this position would go) can't go over 12.4% of the combination of the Administration plus Programs portion of the budget.

If the above two limits are met, then the position can be added. If the added salary causes either the Total Cap or the Administration Cap to be exceeded, then the position can't be added.

This also could be a replacement for, or a promotion from, an existing position. Then - only the difference in cost would have to meet those two requirements - a more likely condition.

But how do we know these conditions are met? We have to trust that; a) the conditions will be checked and met by the Board, and b) the facts will be reported to us.

This is what can be expected to happen when a Board and the Administration alienate themselves with the community as the Plainedge Board has done.. All moves are looked upon with suspicion and doubt.

First and foremost it is up to the Board to change and become more forthright and open with this Community. They have to make a concerted effort to rebuild trust - not to continue to chastise the community and blame them for not turning out in "sufficient numbers" to Board meetings (just how much is sufficient anyway?), or to blame the Community for the Budget defeat.

A defeated budget is due to one of two things: 1) an unrealistic and unacceptable budget, or 2) an improperly "sold" good budget.

Both of these tasks are the responsibility of the Board - not the community. It is about time that someone told them this (someone that they might listen to) or - they recognize and accept that this task must be done by them.[/b]

[concerned]

By the way, there is no such position listed on the school's web site...but, that part of the web site is also still down. FYI.

[elphaba65]

Concerned:
The business office has as long as I can remember had an assistant business manger. Her name is Ida and she has been at the budget presentations throughout the years. As far as her title as Treasurer I believe the school district must have one, I remember reading something about it on the audit. I think sometimes people tend to forget that we have a 57 million dollar budget and less people can allow for more costly errors and/or mismanagement.

Just Facts said: A defeated budget is due to one of two things: 1) an unrealistic and unacceptable budget, or 2) an improperly "sold" good budget.

Or 3) people handing out misleading information or misinformation. Your posting in defense of YRUOK were not the "stats' she posted, nor was it the "stats" on the flyers distributed last year to defeat the budget . When you posted the report card you could have included the results in Newsday Sept 23, 2005 :

Plainedge 4th grade math results 100% passing- 8th grade math results 098.6% passing, but that would only show how the education in Plainedge continues to improve. I also believe you might have been the one that posted the criteria Dr. Richman is evaluated on, you might want to re-read that.

[concerned]

Elphaba-Thanks for clarifying. I never knew that Ida left or was leaving and I definitely did not know her title.

[justfacts]

Just as the information about a prior Board member has not been updated, and the information about the new Board member has not been put in his place, there exists a New Staff member whose background information has not been updated as promised when her job function information was posted at least a month ago.

I'm speaking about Pat Rufo, our new staff addition from Standards and Poors - the firm that reported on some of the test scores achieved by Plainedge. She will be handling Financial and Budgting information in place of Jeff Burns.

For what it is worth - here are results from an Internet search on her name:
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From the Plainedge Schools dot Org Site: Status - Unchanged in a month.

Title: Deputy Superintendent: Dr. Patricia Rufo

Education:
Ed.D
COMING SOON
C.A.S. Paltz

Most Recent Positions Held:
COMING SOON[/i]

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From an anonymous E-Mail Author:

Rufo-Lignos, Patricia, Standard & Poors

PATRICIA RUFOS-LIGNOS received her doctorate from Teachers College, Columbia University, in 1998. She currently is employed at Standard and Poors in New York where she works on state-wide school indicator systems.

Emerging Forms of School Organization, Patricia Rufo-Lignos & Craig Richards — 2003
The article examines three schools and explores their governance, organization, finance, ownership, and admissions, characteristics the research literature indicates distinguish public from private schools. The authors demonstrate that there are emerging forms of school organization that are neither clearly public nor private, but of a third hybred type, or quasi-public organization.
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From a Noted School Information Site (The tcrecord)

EMERGING FORMS OF SCHOOL ORGANIZATION
Competition for district and school contracts has increased as more companies have entered the educational marketplace. Schools must become more discerning buyers of educational services, and avoid naive assumptions about the attributes of markets. ...the theoretical benefits
of private delivery systems, finance structures, and ownership incentives, do not necessarily transfer to public schools when they privatize. School districts, educational policymakers, and the larger community currently lack understanding, knowledge and wisdom about how privatization can hinder or promote the goals of public education. Patricia Rufo-Lignos and Craig Richards consider the state of our understanding of the impact of privatization in this article featured on TCRecord's home page - www.tcrecord.org
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From a School News and Information Site:

This Week's Featured Article:
Competition for district and school contracts has increased as more companies have entered the educational marketplace. Schools must become more discerning buyers of educational services, and avoid naive assumptions about the attributes of markets. ...the theoretical benefits of private delivery systems, finance structures, and ownership incentives, do not necessarily transfer to public schools when they privatize. School districts, educational policymakers, and the larger community currently lack understanding, knowledge and wisdom about how privatization can hinder or promote the goals of public education. Patricia Rufo-Lignos and Craig Richards consider the state of our understanding of the impact of privatization in: Emerging Forms of School Organization
==========================================================================================================
From a Conference Brouchure:

Center for Professional Development in Career and Technical Education
College of Education, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, 19122. Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]

“PSSA: Meeting the Challenge in Career and Technical Education”
An Academy presented by the Center for Professional Development in Career and Technical Education
Temple University Friday, April 2, 2004

Holiday Inn and Conference Center, Fogelsville, PA Washington Room

The Center is sponsoring this Academy on the timely topic of “PSSA: Meeting the Challenge in Career and Technical Education.” The Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) assesses the progress of student performance in reading, math, and writing in reference to compliance with the No Child Left Behind law. Reading and Math are tested in Grades 3, 5, 8, and 11, and writing is tested in Grades 6, 9, and 11. The Academy will feature a statewide overview of the PSSA and strategies for using PSSA data to improve student achievement. There will be presentations of best practices in schools and school districts.

The Academy is open to all Career and Technical Education Administrators, Teachers, and Professional Development Change Agents. Act 48 credit will be available.

There is a $20.00 registration fee for this Academy, payable only by check or money order to “Temple University.” We regret we cannot accept payment in cash. The registration fee includes breakfast and lunch.

PRELIMINARY ACADEMY AGENDA

08:00 – 08:30 AM Registration and Continental Breakfast
08:30 – 08:45 AM Introduction – Dr. Edward Lyba, Executive Director, Partners in Education
08:45 – 09:45 AM “A Statewide Overview of the PSSA” Ms. Patricia Rufo – School Evaluation Services, Standard and Poor’s
09:45 – 10:00 AM Break
10:00 – 11:00 AM “PSSA: Using Action Plannign to build a Framework for Success”
Dr. Robert J. Milrod, Assistant Superintendent, Upper Moreland Township
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From a local Pennsylvania Newspaper:

Tribune-Review
Legislators asked to fix funding formula

By Jason Lesher
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Saturday, March 27, 2004

Ligonier Valley school administrators are asking a state House of Representatives commission to correct funding issues that they say have cost the district money for years. The requests came during an informational meeting Friday held by the state Commission on Rural Education, which is visiting about a dozen schools before filing a report this summer on the needs of rural school districts.

Superintendent Stephen Whisdosh told state representatives and other education officials that the formula the state uses to compute funding for school districts ends up shortchanging Ligonier Valley. He said the state uses unearned income, which is high in the Ligonier area, as part of the equation, but the district gets no tax revenue from this money.

"We're at the bottom of the (state's) list because of the perceived wealth that benefits us in no way," Whisdosh said.

According to state calculations, the personal income per student in the school district is $128,525, a number the superintendent said is way off.

Although 33 percent of Ligonier Valley students come from low-income families, the seventh-highest percentage in Westmoreland County, the district received a smaller increase in state funding than all but one school in a four-county region.

"If I was king, I would definitely deal with the unearned income issue," said state Rep. Dan Surra, of Elk County. "But I'm not king." State Rep. Jess Stairs said that instead of adjusting the distribution formula, which has been the same since the early 1980s, the state usually simplifies the matter by increasing the funding given to all districts.

"The district does have a problem because of its perceived wealth," he said. "It's difficult to make ends meet."

Stairs assured Ligonier Valley officials that their problems would be included in the commission's report. "We will issue a report that has meaning and will not be left on a library shelf to collect dust," he said.

Whisdosh seemed less enthusiastic about the eventual result of the discussion. "I have not asked anything that I haven't asked for years," he said. "I'll wait and see what's done with the information."

Patricia Rufo, associate director of school evaluation services for Standard and Poor's, said school districts can succeed with less-than-average funding.

She said studies have shown there is no correlation between standardized test scores and a district's spending power, and there is no correlation between standardized test scores and the number of pupils in a classroom, either. Rufo did say that as the percentage of economically disadvantaged students in a district increases, test scores generally drop.

Several commission members and Whisdosh agreed that support from parents is important to a child's success in school, noting that there are many parents from poverty-level families who provide the support their children need. "The home life is very, very critical," Surra said. "I don't know what the government can do about that."

Jason Lesher can be reached at [e-mail] or [phone].
===========================================================================================================
From a Dentist's Internet Home page:

Paul Plascyk, D.D.S.

Patient Testimonials: These patients received no compensation for their testimonials

Patricia Rufo, New York, NY :
"As a new patient of Dr. Plascyk's, I was immediately impressed by his level of communication, and specifically his willingness to explain all aspects of procedures including alternatives and their implications. I was also thrilled to find a dentist who embraced holistic dentistry and used biocompatible techniques. After several visits I remain convinced that he offers the highest quality of dental service available."
===========================================================================================================

[Go Plainedge!]

Et Tu Justfacts?

I thought it was my job to complain about the horrible website the Plainedge district maintains (or should I say doesn't maintain).

There is not one ounce of creativity in the design, layout, navigation, or information communicated in that site.

The site doesn't promote anything good about the schools, the students and their achievements, photographs of recent events, commoradery, sense of community or motivation of the members of this school district. The administration section is pathetic. The Board of Ed section is STILL not updated and trying to research past information is an arduous task at best.

The entire site is plagued with incorrect and outdated information and is crying for attention.

Instead it has become one giant, continuous email blog.

I know, I know....contingency budget...blah, blah, blah. Last I checked, that High school was filled with students taking computer and graphic design classes. I bet they wouldn't cost a dime.

[justfacts]

Go Plainedge! - I just don't understand You about your last post on the quality of the Plainedge site!!!

Just why are you so complimentary about it?

After all, didn't some of the early posts on this Forum from pro-BOE members complain about other Plainedge sites and their lack of updates, meeting dates and poor quality!

Apparently, this quality review and criterion evaluation of other sites was obviously done by very critical and expert persons who were use to the site standards established by very skilled professionals they hired to run the School District site - You remember that site, the one that the Professionals failed to make hack-proof, only took several months to get back up and restore to operation, don't you?

Now that the present site is repaired and hosted by another named entity there is no reason that it should even be up to the abysmal standards of the former site.

What do you expect from the professionals hired by this administration - quality work or boot-licking?

Or in other words - we know that we're not getting the best educational bang for the buck for our children from this administration - why expect a better bang for the buck from any of their other endeavors - especially in such a simple area as a WEB site?

[Go Plainedge!]

;D

This has been a pet peeve of mine for a long time now. The technology we have is not being utilized to it's best and fullest extent (on the community information side). This goes back longer than a contingency budget...so that argument won't work here.

Web design is quite easy these days. From pre-designed templates that cost $50.00 - $100.00 to WYSIWYG programs that make the design of a web site something anyone with minimal training can do.

Updating a site is easy too! This blog format that we have going is hard on the eyes, daunting to read and quite simply...boring. A website should represent who it is created for. If this site represents what Plainedge Schools has to offer, we're in trouble.

Web design is not rocket science...and even that is overrated these days.

Here's another idea....tap into the resources of the community. I bet there are several people in this community that would love to lend their expertise.

[justfacts]

Yes, I agree with you - there is an inbred failure in the educational system that fosters the unchallenged belief that only educators and those that have progressed thru their system of certifications step-by-step are capable of intelligent and creative activities. Paper, not necessarily knowledge, provides their cloak of respectability.

However, there is an untapped resource under their noses that possesses a degree of creative skill that could make their site "state of the art", only educators often lack the hubris to tap into that resource and turn it loose. That resource is the students.

I've often lectured and made presentations to educators who laud the insights and knowledge I have given to them, and often they immediately request that I "show them how the think and create that way" in the only format they are use to - a structured course on creativity.

They fail to be able to use the knowledge they already have in new and creative ways - they feel that they must first be shown each step on the way to being creative and innovative.

The children are often not so inhibited - resulting in a greater degree of originality and creative work at the forefront of the latest technology.

Not only are these new technologies lying fallow on the community side - they are underused on the educational side.

One bright spot is the new offshoot of the Linux operating system in the computer world. There's a new technology, one that just calls for putting a CD-ROM into any PC and getting it to network without any possible hazard to the PC's existing hard drive or O/S (the technology is called Knoppix).

With these bootable CD-ROMS, Students can put their own CD into any PC and tap into the internet or school network for research or reference reading - or cruise right into the latest lesson plans and interactive videos provided by the School.

Some bright educators are contributing their efforts to develop new lesson plan material in this arena that will eventually lead to the doing away with those heavily laden backpacks of books the children tote to and fro on a daily basis! And do away with the cost of the heavy, glitzy books that they turn in after just one semester of use. None of these books can carry an interactive local lesson plan as the CD-ROM's can do.

Book rights and licenses can be applied to these few simple CD-ROM courses that students can use at any Grade level - and have for future course "looking back" reference, or even retain as a lifetime treasure.

Even without that new CD-ROM method of knowledge transfer - why aren't we using more of the school network interactions to the homes of the children? Don't just rely on the internet as a source of information - use the local school lesson plans and interactivity to achieve the goals of distant learning. Why can't some tests be taken at home?

The children can aid in brainstorming the way that would work best for them. Let their creativity and interest loose, just channel it into the more productive avenues that fit into a structured course of education - both in class and at home!

In regard to the community use of new technology that has been bought and paid for, why aren't we able to use it to view these School Board meetings in our homes during our available schedule times as Techie has suggested?

If these vital meetings are truly under attended - stop blaming the community and make them available by using this new and parallel avenue of communication, recorded video conferencing. The students could implement it - and they would learn a great deal in the process.

The children can help the educators do it. I know first hand that the children in the Seaford School District had the ICQ system ( a video networking system over the internet) up and running in their computer classes over eight years ago! They had educational transfers with Sweden going on a regular basis. The educators at Seaford couldn't establish or run the system - but they did have the courage to turn loose the creativity of the children to make it happen!

It seems the "authority figures" for too long have lacked the initiative and courage to employ and channel the skills of both the children and adults in the community, thus turning loose and avalanche of interesting and productive new methods for transferring knowledge in an orderly and productive manner.

Their challenge would be too new and unfamiliar - how to harness all the community resources, not just the money, to achieve the best education for the children in their district.

[justfacts]

From a prior post about Pat Rufo

Our "Business Manager" replacement for Jeff Burns with the Official Title of "Assistant Superintendent for Business & Administration", now known as Dr. Tricia Rufo.

This is for those that have had recent exchanges at Board Meetings with Pat Rufo. It might aid their evaluations and understandings of our B&A Superintendent.

*********************************************

From a paper presented at a Professional Group meeting before coming to Plainedge:

“PSSA: Meeting the Challenge in Career and Technical Education”
An Academy presented by the Center for Professional Development in Career and Technical Education, Temple University Friday, April 2, 2004.

08:45 – 09:45 AM “A Statewide Overview of the PSSA” Ms. Patricia Rufo – School Evaluation Services, Standard and Poor’s.

Patricia Rufo, associate director of school evaluation services for Standard and Poor's, said school districts can succeed with less-than-average funding.

She said studies have shown there is no correlation between standardized test scores and a district's spending power, and there is no correlation between standardized test scores and the number of pupils in a classroom, either. Rufo did say that as the percentage of economically disadvantaged students in a district increases, test scores generally drop.

*********************************************

Have you heard differently lately?

Ed.

Let's get the budget bucks back into Programs - cut from Capital & Administration before touching a buck from Programs. We've had too many year's of it being the other way around!

[Go Plainedge!]

justfacts said:

Have you heard differently lately?

Ed.

Let's get the budget bucks back into Programs - cut from Capital & Administration before touching a buck from Programs. We've had too many year's of it being the other way around!

Yes. It was when I watching the dog and pony show....again!