Nov 30, 2016

An Assessment of the Effectiveness of Terry Henry and the Department of College and Career Readiness at the Minneapolis Public Schools


Terry Henry is Director of the Department of College and Career Readiness (CCR) at the Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS), receiving an annual salary of exactly $100,000.  Mr. Henry leads a staff of at least fifteen people (my information is that CCR has added as many as three staff members since I compiled the following list).  Salaries allotted to personnel in this department total well over $900,000 and may now extend past $1,000,000.
Composition of Staff of the MPS Department of College and Career Readiness is as follows:

From the Department of College and Career Readiness
Department of Career and College Readiness



 Position

 

1.  Terry Henry                                 Executive Director 

 

2.  Colleen Kaibel                             Student Retention and

                                                                 Recovery Director


3.  Heidi Olson                                  WWYB Associate Educator             

 

4.  James (Jim) Bierma                    District Q-Comp Counselor

 

5.  Jennifer Ennen                            Office Specialist

 

6.  Jenni Yang                                    Gear Up Program Manager

 

7.  Jodi Danielson                             District My Life Plan Counselor

 

8.  Kelsey Clark                                  District Middle School/ High School
                                                                                                         Counselor

 

9.  Jill Bjorklund                                 STEM/ CTE Project Coordinator

 

10.  Michael (Mike) Ash                  Account Specialist                          

 

11.  Paul Klynn                                  Career Development Coordinator

 

12.  Quyen Phan                               ALC 9-12 Manager                           

 

13.  Sara Etzel                                   Director, CTE/ STEM

 

14.  Tamala Washington-Green    Office Manager                        

 

15.  Vanessa Moe                            JAG  Coordinator

 
The Department of College and Career Readiness is the namesake entity manifesting the current MPS slogan, "every student college and career ready."  During the tenure (2010-2015) of MPS Superintendent Bernadeia Johnson, this verbal banner replaced the comparable verbiage, "Expect Great Things!") launched during the leadership phase (1997-2003) of Superintendent Carol Johnson.  Presumably, when no great things materialized to meet those forlorn expectations, leaders at MPS decided to shift to a more earthbound slogan.


But students of the Minneapolis Public Schools are no more "college and career ready" than they were ever able realistically able to "expect great things."  Only about 62% of students Minneapolis Public Schools graduate in four years;  for African American, Hispanic, and American Indian students, the four-year graduation rate is less than 40 percent.  Districtwide, fewer than 47% of students are achieving at grade level in mathematics and reading; and fewer than 27% of African American, Hispanic, and American Indian students demonstrate grade level performance in those key skill areas.  And aside from this vital matter of fundamental skill deficits, curriculum is so knowledge-poor that no MPS student goes forth into the world with high prospects of living as a culturally enriched, civically prepared, or professionally satisfied citizen.


This situation implies strongly that for whatever piecemeal good the Department of Career and College Readiness does, this assemblage of central office functionaries at the Davis Center (1250 West Broadway in North Minneapolis) is not delivering on the central promise of MPS leaders and sloganeers.


Here is how those at the MPS Department of College and Career Readiness introduce their mission at the CCR portal of the MPS website:     

Every child college and career ready

  • Minnesota and MPS define career and college readiness as high school graduates having the “knowledge, skills, and competencies to successfully pursue a career pathway, including postsecondary credit leading to a degree, diploma, certificate, or industry-recognized credential and employment”.
  • MPS CCR believes “Growing the Family” increases career/vocational awareness as an urgent factor for our inner-city households, growing industry connections for all MPS families to meet 21st Century workforce needs, intentional focus towards middle-high wage employment, and providing innovative measures to mandate character development within our engagement process (quality customer service, culturally relevant programming, social-emotional development, grit/persistence, etc). 

What we do

CCR is a team of specialized professionals who provide leadership, structures, programming, and support to students, families, schools, and district leadership to educate and empower students with the skills and knowledge to succeed in college and careers. We are fierce advocates for career and college readiness across the district. 

Students who graduate high school career and college ready will possess the knowledge, skills and behaviors to successfully complete workforce training, certificate programs or entry-level credit-bearing college courses. More specifically the student will possess:

  • Academic readiness – mastery of core foundational knowledge and the cognitive skills necessary to do post-secondary work 

  • College knowledge – the skills to navigate the systems necessary to enroll and succeed  in post-secondary education
  • Career awareness – knowledge of career pathways and opportunities, and the relationship between education, training and career goals
  • Personal and social readiness – individual determination and perseverance to thrive and learn in a post-secondary environment
  • Intercultural competence – the ability to learn, work and communicate in a multi-cultural world 
Minneapolis Public Schools will assist students in becoming career and college ready through:

  • Academic readiness - providing access to and support for coursework that is challenging to each student and that provides the content knowledge and cognitive skills necessary to do post-secondary work and promoting understanding of content at deeper levels through integration of interdisciplinary topics. MPS keeps a focus on critical thinking and out of the box idea generation and collaboration.
  • College knowledge - teaching students the skills to navigate the systems necessary to enroll and succeed in post-secondary education or training 
  • Career awareness - exposing students to a variety of career pathways and economic opportunities with updated job trends in mind, demonstrating the relationship between education, training and careers, and helping students to develop a plan to access those opportunities 
  • Personal and social readiness  - helping students to develop the behaviors needed for future success, such as individual determination, perseverance, strong study skills, time management, setting goals, seeking help when needed, and the ability to work collaboratively with others 
  • Intercultural competence - fostering a climate of cross-cultural understanding, respect, appreciation, communication and engagement

CCR aligns with the MPS Acceleration 2020 strategic plan through the following programs and initiatives:

  • Core Academic Content - Multiple Pathways to Graduation, MC3 (Multidisciplinary Apprenticeship/Trade Programming), GEAR UP - Tutoring, Early Warning Monitoring System 8th/9th Grade, School Counseling
  • Life and Career Skills - GEAR UP - Community Impact, Check & Connect Services, My Life Plan, Work Based Learning, College Readiness Centers
  • Learning and Innovation - Extended Learning, Academic Enrichment and Support, Alternative Education Redesign, Personalized Learning, CTE/STEM
  • Key Learning Techniques for Successful Transitions - 8th to 9th Grade Transition, College Entrance Preparation, Social/Emotional Development and Support, CCR Mentoring Programs



Minneapolis Public Schools is committed to providing all students with the academic preparation, habits of work and mind, personal awareness and intercultural competencies needed to be successful after high school. That success includes opportunities to pursue post-secondary education and lifelong learning, sustainable and meaningful careers, and active participation in the local and global community.

 

                                .......................................................................................


 

Scour the above jargon-laden account and the careful reader will find little of substance that applies to the entire 35,717 students of the Minneapolis Public Schools, so that any pretension to ensure that all MPS students are "college and career ready" exists only as rhetorical obfuscation.


This propensity for vague verbiage applies also to the description given for the key programs of the MPS Department of College and Career Readiness:  AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination), Check & Connect, GEAR UP (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs), JAG (Jobs for Graduates), WWYB (We Want You Back), and PLTW (Project Lead the Way).

Here is how the MPS Department of College and Career Readiness presents and describes the AVID program:


















What is AVID?



 AVID is a program to prepare students for successful completion of a four year college degree.



It is offered as an  elective class teaching critical thinking and writing skills.

Two days a week students focus on accelerated curriculum, two days tutors works with students in small groups, and the fifth day is flexible for: guest speakers, field trips, research, projects and test preparation. 

All AVID students are required to co-enroll in rigorous classes such as:

  • International Baccalaureate
  • Advanced Placement
  • College in the Schools
  • Honors classes

Why choose AVID as an elective class?

60 Minutes  featured AVID as a program successfully closing the achievement gap in urban school districts.

AVID started almost 30 years ago in California and has decades of independent research by colleges and universities validating the success of the program. Research results are available on their website www.avidonline.org/research

AVID serves almost 300,000 students nation-wide in 42 states.  Both California and Texas fund AVID at the state level.

All AVID students are required to take AP - Advanced Placement classes in high school by their junior year.  The best predictor of completing college based on many research studies, is the number of  AP classes taken in high school and successfully completion of the AP exam. This is a better predictor of  college success than: GPA, class rank, or ACT/SAT scores.

Where do I go for more information?

maria.roberts@mpls.k12.mn.us


And for Check & Connect, the description goes as follows:


Check & Connect

is a program developed to re-engage students in their education.

Through long-term sustained support, Check & Connect seeks to build a relationship with each student that will serve to connect them with their school and aid in their progress towards graduation.
Weekly conversations, tutoring and homework help form the basis for a trusted bond between the student and the Check & Connect monitor. This enables the monitor to individually and definitively determine the interventions best suited to the students’ needs. The monitor then works on behalf of the student as a mentor, tutor, problem-solver, listener and case advocate.

KEY FEATURES

  • Preventative-focuses on high school drop-out risk factors that can be altered through intervention.
  • Builds capacity-instructs and encourages students in the acquisition of new skills.
  • Efficient-coordinates student access to established resources within the school, at home and in the community.

 

  • Outreach-structured to create long-term and trusted relationships
  • Individualized-uniquely focuses on the individual needs of students.
  • Adaptable-designed to incorporate the goals and strengths of the school and the local community.


CHECK & CONNECT IS ABOUT...

  • Building a relationship with each student.
  • Implementing interventions to keep students involved in their education.
  • Monitoring grades, credits and attendance regularly.
  • Offering academic support including tutoring after school.
  • Facilitating collaboration between the school, home and community services to ensure educational success.
For GEAR UP, the presentation goes as follows:


GEAR UP (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs) is a nation-wide, federally funded grant initiative offered through the U.S. Department of Education. Minneapolis Public Schools was awarded a seven year, $14 million dollar grant beginning in January 2015. GEAR UP will serve 2,560 students in 17 of the school district’s middle and secondary schools. The project begins with current sixth- and seventh-grade students, following sixth-graders through their senior year of high school and seventh-graders through their first year of college.

The grant will focus on five key objectives:

  • Increase GEAR UP students’ academic performance and preparation for postsecondary education
  • Increase GEAR UP students’ rate of high school graduation and postsecondary enrollment
  • Increase GEAR UP students’ and families’ knowledge of postsecondary education options, preparation and financing
  • Increase percentage of GEAR UP students who enroll and succeed in postsecondary education
  • Increase the preparation of teachers and staff to teach and serve GEAR UP students

Services that will be supported by the grant include:

  • Increased academic monitoring of students’ progress through new IT systems and databases, including tracking of ninth-grade credit readiness indicators to ensure students are prepared for high school

 

  • Increased school counseling, particularly for middle school students
  • Additional summer school programming with a specific emphasis on exposure to postsecondary options
  • New programming to support students making transitions into high school or changing schools
  • Financial planning and college readiness workshops
  • First-year programming to support students in their first year of post-secondary education


For the JAG program, the summary goes as follows:


Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG)



is a national program dedicated to preventing student dropout and focusing on pathways to career, life, and college readiness among young people who face significant barriers to academic and career success. 

  • Over a three decade span, Jobs for America’s Graduates has delivered consistent, results – helping nearly three-quarters of a million students remain in school through graduation, pursue post-secondary education opportunities, and secure quality entry-level jobs leading to career advancement opportunities.
     

MPS students in grades 11 through 12 are served in the Multi-Year Program Application. The focus in the Multi-Year Program is college/career readiness and work-based mentoring. Therefore, providing proactive career driven support from 11th grade through graduation is our primary objective.  JAG Specialist will provide instruction during the “in-school” phase as well as follow-up support services after graduation. 

 

JAG Specialists are held directly accountable for the 30 to 45 young people in his/her charge. It is the combination of these equally important components, in-school instruction and post-graduation support services, and the consistent results that distinguishes MPS JAG from other school-to-work models.  JAG Specialists focus on the 37 core competency-based modules of the National In-School Curriculum, which provides 370 hours of classroom instruction.

 

We Want You Back (WWYB) supports students who did not receive, or are at risk of not receiving their high school diploma. Our team regularly reaches out to students who left a Minneapolis Public School without graduating and invites them to come back. We also work closely with school support staff to make sure that returned students stay on track for graduation. 

 

For students ages 11-21 living in Minneapolis who are not enrolled in school, We Want You Back will: 

  • Help you to understand your educational options based on your earned credits
  • Guide you through the re-enrollment process
  • Continue to provide support until you graduate using the Check & Connect model
  • Connect you with other support services within Minneapolis Public Schools and Hennepin County



And WWYB is described thusly:


For students in grade 12, under age 21, and within 3 credits of graduating, We Want You Back will: 


For students over age 21, We Want You Back will: 

  • Connect you with Adult Education programs (GED and Adult Diploma) in and around Minneapolis

For students missing one or more GRAD or MBST Tests, We Want You Back will: 

  • Give the Accuplacer Reading, Writing, and/or Math exams. 


  • Look through your credits to determine if the GED is a good option for you
  • Help you to fill out an Age Waiver form to take the exam

If you or someone you know is considering returning to MPS to complete your high school diploma, please call We Want You Back and one of our staff can help you get started. (612) 668-1200.



Project Lead the Way (PLTW) is an offering of the Department of Career and Technical Education (CTE), which includes Director Sara Etzel, STEM & CTE Project Coordinators Jill Bjorklund and Nancy Mai, and Career Development Coordinator Paul Klym.  The CTE Department is associated with the Department of College and Career Readiness led by Terry Henry.  The PLTW program is a grant-funded program that supports science and engineering preparation at Sanford Middle School;  computer science training at North High School, Southwest High School, and Transitions Plus (an alternative high school);  and preparation for college and university level study in engineering at Patrick Henry High School, South High School, and Washburn High School.


.............................................................


Thus does the Department of Career and College Readiness and the associated Department of Career and Technical Education at the Minneapolis Public Schools offer a number of programs, described in verbiage intended to resonate impressively.


But the programs are not well-articulated, cohesive, or comprehensive.  They serve just a tiny fraction of MPS students.  And the effectiveness of these programs is not well-substantiated.


The AVID program in particular is overrated as a college preparatory endeavor.  Many of my students in the New Salem Educational Initiative have been AVID participants.  The program is not academically engaging on a day-by-day basis and provides inadequate preparation for the ACT college readiness exam.  What strengths there are in the program lie in assistance with the college and university application process and occasional visits to college and university campuses.  But even in these areas, my observation is that students do learn how to fill out application forms and meet application deadlines, but they are not well-informed as to the programmatic strengths and weaknesses of individual colleges and universities;  and very little is done to ready first generation students for the reality of campus academic life or social climate.


The verdict on the Check & Connect, GEAR UP, JAG, and WWYB programs is very much still out.  Data are slim.  Hard numbers pertinent to students served are only offered in the case of GEAR UP, for which the claim is that as of January 2015 2,560 students in 17 MPS schools would be served;  even if this figure is proving correct, that would be just seven percent (7%) of all MPS students.


.........................................................


Terry Henry earns $100,000 and leads a department the salary outlays for which are about $1,000,000.  The Department of College and Career Readiness attracts a great deal of grant money for programs that come with grand but unsubstantiated claims.

To justify his continued employment at the Minneapolis Schools, and existence of a department that by appellation bears the mission of MPS to send forth "every student college and career ready,"
Mr. Henry has much work to do. 

He must connect better with Chief of Schools Michael Thomas, Chief Academic Officer Susanne Griffin, Teaching and Learning Director Macarre Traynham, Focused Instruction point person Tina Platt, and the six associate superintendents---   so doing in the prime mission of the locally centralized school district to impart a knowledge-intensive education to all students, sending these precious specimens of humanity forth with highly favorable prospects as culturally enriched, civically prepared, and professionally satisfied citizens.

Terry Henry and staff have much work to do, indeed.   They are not even close to providing the education of excellence, according to the purposes of K-12 education, summarized in the foregoing paragraph and detailed in many places on this blog.

Terry Henry and the staff at the Department of College and Career Readiness at the Minneapolis Public Schools should be evaluated accordingly.

The justification for their occupancy of the given staff positions and even the case for the positions themselves are very much in doubt.  

































Welcome to the

Career & Technical Education (CTE) Department!

Sara Etzel                            Director of CTE/ STEM

Jill Bjorklund                     STEM & CTE Project Coordinator

Nancy Mai                           STEM & CTE Project Coordinator

Paul Klym                            Career Development Coordinator

The Career & Technical Education program provides context to core academics through integrated, applied and experiential learning with a broad exposure to career fields and a balanced high school experience. This program is one of the four core rigorous programs (AP, IB, CIS, and CTE) offered by Minneapolis Public Schools to support student achievement, reduce dropout rates, and prepare more students to become college and career ready.

Students participating in Career and Technical Education courses experience both rigorous academic and career preparation in state approved courses staffed by appropriately licensed staff. All students will graduate well prepared for postsecondary education, work, and citizenship. In addition, they will be connected with a variety of career opportunities through career exploration activities, job shadows, and internships.

Please view the Google Slides below to learn more about the Career and Technical Education courses offered in MPS High Schools.



 

Chief of Schools Michael Thomas is a Potential Candidate as the Next MPS Superintendent But Owes the Public a Number of Explanations

Michael Thomas is Chief of Schools at the Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS), earning a salary of $151,000 annually.


A portal at the MPS website describes the responsibilities of Chief of Schools as follows  >>>>>


Chief of Schools Michael Thomas
The chief of schools manages operational connections to support associate superintendents, principals and teaching staff in accelerating student achievement and overall school improvement that is aligned to the core values and academic goals of Acceleration 2020.


Mr. Thomas's academic credentials, provided to me upon request, are given as follows  >>>>>




Michael Thomas, Chief of Schools


Ed.D. in Educational Leadership, University of St. Thomas (anticipated)
Superintendent and Administrative Licensures, University of St. Thomas


MSW, University of Minnesota


B.A.: Social Work, University of St. Thomas


An examination of Michael Thomas's job description and academic credentials impel me toward the following comments:


The prime function of the six associate superintendents (Celia Saddler, Jackie Hanson, Paul Marietta, Ron Wagner, Laura Cavender, and Lucilla Davila [Yira]) who work under Mr. Thomas's supervision is to support building principals (75 in number, including those heading 60 conventional elementary, middle, and high schools;  and 15 heading other, nonconventional schools).  "Support" effectively means to retrain principals who gained certification and degrees in one of the wretched departments, schools, or colleges of education that produce almost all of our teachers and administrators.  The associate superintendents each receive $141,500 annually;  this yields a figure of $849,000 for all of the associate superintendents and combined with Mr. Thomas's salary of $151,000 totals exactly $1,000,000.


That is a lot of money to spend in frank recognition that principals are so poorly trained in the first place:


Sixteen additional teachers or thirty-two teachers aides, for example, could be hired to provide classroom instruction to students;  well-trained teachers' aides working assiduously to remediate skill deficits for students functioning below grade level would be of enormous value in addressing the most immediate needs of students.


That $1,000,000 might be worth the price, though, if student outcomes had improved over the course of the last several years. 


But the academic performance of students in the Minneapolis Public Schools is abysmal:


The MPS Acceleration 2020 Strategic Plan promises a growth of five (5) percentage points in overall student achievement and a growth of eight (8) percentage points for lowest performing students.  The plan took effect at the onset of the 2014-2015 academic year and runs through the 2019-2020 academic year.  But two years into the plan, MPS student scores on the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCAs) are essentially flat, and fewer than 28% of African American (both those speaking and those not speaking English at home), American Indian, and Hispanic students are meeting grade level standards.


The 2020 Plan focuses on six goals:  improved student outcomes;  equity;  family and community partnerships;  effective teachers, school leaders, and staff;  stewardship;  and resources for students and schools.  Stewardship refers to overall wise use of funds;  resources for students and schools
promises budget prioritization for use of funds at the level of the classroom and other areas with direct impact on students. 


But with reference to those six goals, student outcomes have not improved, and as long as that is true there cannot be equity;  in the absence of equity and academic excellence there is logically a lack of effective teachers, school leaders, and staff and a failure to utilize family and community partnerships so as to improved student academic performance; and failure to meet any of these four goals means that stewardship has fallen far short and resources for students and schools have not been utilized effectively where they are most needed.


...............................................................


If, as Chief of Schools, Michael Thomas is supposed to manage "operational connections to support associate superintendents, principals and teaching staff in accelerating student achievement and overall school improvement that is aligned to the core values and academic goals of Acceleration 2020," he has a great deal of explaining to do.  If students in the Minneapolis Pubic Schools are faltering and Mr. Thomas is Chief of Schools, he is heavily implicated in the failure.  If none of the six goals of the Acceleration 2020 Strategic Plan are gaining attainment, he bears major responsibility, along with Chief Academic Officer Susanne Griffin.


And yet Michael Thomas in my observation understands that neither teachers nor principals come to the Minneapolis Public Schools with the training they need to provide an education of excellence.  Understanding that fact is the first step in doing something about it.  My observation is that the associate superintendents understand the same reality and go forth at Mr. Thomas's direction to improve the situation, specifically in the case of the building principals.  They are making an assiduous effort to guide principals toward what they understand to be effective strategies for addressing skill deficiencies in mathematics and reading.  The efforts are not yielding results, but the associate superintendents are trying hard.


Mr. Thomas also gives evidence of being an effective public presence:


When half a decade ago the Minneapolis Foundation was touting its RESET campaign (for what evidentially proved a failed effort to induce reform in K-12 education), Mr. Thomas was the good soldier sent forth by Superintendent Bernadeia Johnson to mount an articulate army of words in defense of the indefensible:  the implementation of strategies at the Minneapolis Public Schools for achieving academic excellence. (Note: There were in fact viable strategies in Shift, High Priority Schools, and Focused Instruction, but the energy and organization behind the strategies were insufficient;  the failure was in the ultimately paramount matter of implementation.).


And in the aftermath of the superintendent search debacle, when an awkward few weeks ensued after Interim Superintendent Michael Goar resigned and new Superintendent Ed Graff's term began, Michael Thomas became for that brief interlude the Interim Superintendent.    He presided over meetings with considerable grace, eloquence, and efficiency---  and handled several dicey personnel issues with aplomb.


......................................................


Given his recognition of key problems, genuine efforts to address those problems, and leadership qualities germane to the role of public schools superintendent, Michael Thomas deserves consideration as Superintendent of the Minneapolis Public Schools in the aftermath of Ed Graff's likely failure.


Thomas should be thinking hard and getting good advice.  He should strongly consider the five most critical points (curriculum overhaul, teacher retraining, effective tutoring, family outreach, and bureaucratic paring) pertinent to a program for the needed transformation of the Minneapolis Public Schools. 


He needs that advice:


Thomas's academic training is not impressive.  His bachelor's and master's degrees are both in social work, an admirable but not academically rigorous field of study (students often flock to social work when they have failed in other majors);  and his training otherwise is of the sort that produces unprepared and frequently inept teachers, principals, and superintendents.  Thomas should read everything ever written by E. D. Hirsch (founder of the Core Knowledge Foundation), internalize the need for knowledge intensity, and consult with those who can envision for him how to implement the five-point program for making the Minneapolis Public Schools a model for K-12 education.


In my observation, Michael Thomas is the most promising candidate as the superintendent of the Minneapolis Public Schools, unless Houston (Texas) Independent School District turnaround specialist Charles Foust could be induced to give MPS another chance.


But Thomas carries a lot of baggage over many years of student failure in the Minneapolis Public Schools.


He needs to study hard, consult heavily, find his way toward the knowledge-intensive approach to education.  He'll have to commit himself to a program of retraining of teachers and principals that prepares them thoroughly before they ever inhabit classrooms or school buildings (thus replacing the current conscientious but ineffective and expensive efforts of the associate superintendents).


Michael Thomas has potential to be the leader needed to superintend the overhaul of the Minneapolis Public Schools.


But he's got


studying,


consultation,


and


explaining


to do.



Nov 28, 2016

An Assessment of the Strengths and Weaknesses of MPS Chief Academic Officer Susanne Griffin

Susan Griffin is Chief Academic Officer of the Minneapolis Public Schools, receiving a salary of $151,000 annually.


Ms. Griffin is a caring and experienced educator who is not likely to morph into the proponent of knowledge-intensive education central to the definition of academic excellence.

Inasmuch as that is so, Ms. Griffin should be terminated in her present position as Minneapolis Public Schools Chief Academic Officer and reassigned to a position more appropriate to her talents.
A portal of the MPS website gives the duties of Ms. Griffin as Chief Academic Officer, as follows:

Chief Academic Officer


Susanne Griffin

The chief academic officer oversees the academic division and implements the academic agenda to provide world-class education for all MPS students. Areas of focus include accelerated academic achievement for all students, shared accountability for student learning, professional development for teachers and principals and respectful and welcoming school environments.

Information on those offices and department under Ms' Griffin's supervision are as follows;

Susanne Griffin (Chief Academic Officer)

        Responsible for the following:

         Community Education
         College and Career Readiness        
         Early Childhood Education
         Educational & Cultural Services/ Indian Education
         Professional Development
         Special Education
         Teaching & Learning



Ms. Griffin's academic credentials are given as follows:

Susanne Griffin, Chief Academic Officer

Superintendent Licensure, Minnesota State University-Mankato


Educational Policy and Administration (58 credits toward Doctorate)
and Administrative Licensure, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities


M.S.: Communicative Disorders, University of Wisconsin–Madison

B.S.: Secondary Education and Speech/Language Pathologist Licensure, University of Wisconsin–River Falls

As is the case with most of those in leadership positions at the Minneapolis Public Schools, Susanne Griffin's university training is entirely in education programs.  She has no training in key academic disciplines such as government, economics, physics, mathematics, world literature, or music.  She does have training in the very important field of speech pathology, but this commendable expertise does not readily translate into curricular design for a broad K-12 education in the liberal, technological, and vocational arts.


According to the best information available to me, Susanne Griffin has internalized the emphasis on critical thinking and lifelong learning advanced by education professors who, as explained in many places on this blog, use such a definition to avoid the knowledge intensity that they themselves lack in their own training:  They are as a rule neither critical thinkers nor seekers after broad and deep knowledge.


Ms. Griffin has working under her supervision two very weak staff members at the Davis Center of the Minneapolis Public Schools:  Macarre Traynham (Director of Teaching and Learning) and Tina Platt (Project Manager and MPS point person for Focused Instruction).  Traynham and Platt have very little grasp of the prime curriculum for knowledge intensive-education, that developed at the Core Knowledge Foundation of E. D. Hirsch.  And, as I will detail articles in other of this series, neither Traynham nor Platt have subject area expertise most pertinent to the development of knowledge-intensive education at the Minneapolis Public Schools.

Susanne Griffin did not hire Platt, but she has kept her in her position for the three years of Ms. Griffin's tenure as Chief Academic Officer.  And she did hire Traynham, drawn to the latter's emphasis on culturally relevant curriculum.  As I have detailed in many articles, culturally sensitivity should be integral to every aspect of life in the Minneapolis Public Schools, best imparted in academic terms in the context of broad and deep subject area knowledge of the kind that Traynham neither values nor is positioned to develop.

Many of the departments under Susanne Griffin's responsibility are nowhere close to meeting the standards suggested by their names, and for which they were presumably created.  This is discussed in many places on this blog and is a major focus in my book, now in advanced draft form as Understanding the Minneapolis Public Schools:  Present Condition, Future Prospect.  This observation is particularly true for the Department of College and Career Readiness and the Department of Indian Education.  Special education is far from ideal at the Minneapolis Public Schools, and professional development does not even remotely approximate the level of teacher retraining that will be necessary to achieve an education of K-12 excellence.

Then there is the matter of academic performance of students at MPS as given in Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA) scores from spring 2016:

Percentage of Students Recording
Grade Level Performance on MCAs:

Disaggregated Data for Academic Years
Ending in 2014, 2015, and 2016

                     Math       


African American                  2014       2015      2016
 
Male                                       20.8%    22.0%   19.1%

Female                                    21.2%   20.7%   20.5%

African (Somali, Ethiopian, Liberian---
(late 20th/early 21st century immigrant populations)

                                                 2014       2015      2016

Male                                       24.2%      25.0%   23.6%

Female                                    24.1%     25.9%    21.5%

Hispanic                                  2014       2015      2016

Male                                       32.1%      33.5%   32.1%

Female                                   29.4%       30.3%  30.4.%

Native American/                   2014       2015      2016 
American Indian


Male                                      19.9%      16.5%   16.0%

Female                                  25.0%      21.9%   21.3% 




Asian                                      2014        2015      2016 

Male                                      44.1%      47.4%   45.4%

Female                                   51.3%      53.4%   54.1%




White/ Caucasian                   2014       2015      2016

Male                                       76.7%     78.4%   77.4%


Female                                    77.0%     77.9%   78.4%

All Students                           2014       2015      2016  

Male                                      43.1%     44.3%    42.9%

Female                                  43.9%      44.5%   44.4%

Percentage of Students Recording Grade Level Performance on MCAs:


Disaggregated Data for Academic Years Ending in 2014, 2015, and 2016

Reading                                          

African American                2014       2015      2016

Male                                    18.8%     18.5%    18.2%

Female                                 24.0%     24.5%    23.4%

African (Somali, Ethiopian, Liberian---
 late 20th/early 21st century immigrant populations)

                                             2014       2015      2016 


Male                                   18.8%     19.3%    20.4%

Female                               27.6%     24.3%     23.2%

Hispanic                             2014       2015      2016 

Male                                   22.0%     22.9%   24.7%

Female                               24.5%     26.6%    27.6%

Native American/              2014       2015      2016 
American Indian

Male                                   18.3%     13.9%   15.3%

Female                                23.6%     26.1%   25.9%

Asian                                   2014       2015      2016 

Male                                    36.0%     35.8%   38.8%


Female                                 44.7%     44.1%   50.6%



White/ Caucasian                2014       2015      2016 

Male                                    75.3%     74.3%   74.0%

Female                                 81.0%     80.2%   80.0%

All Students                         2014       2015      2016 

Male                                     39.2%    38.7%    39.6%

Female                                  45.3%    45.1%   45.8%

These scores testify to dismal academic performance at the Minneapolis Public Schools, for which someone bearing the title of Chief Academic Officer must bear responsibility.



.............................................................

Susanne Griffin has a range of valuable experiences in education.  She served as teacher, principal, and central office administrator in the school district of Rochester, Minnesota.  At one point in her personally successful career in Rochester, she made the courageous decision to seize an opportunity to go to Atlanta, Georgia, to gain experience in working with students from impoverished families and with communities of color.

Susanne Griffin is a compassionate educator who truly aspires to serve the academic needs of all children.  Her philosophical predispositions, however, do now and are likely always to impede her from designing the knowledge-intensive program that must be at the core of K-12 academic excellence.


Susanne Griffin's philosophical propensities are not suitable to the position of Chief Academic Officer, but they could translate well to positions involving more specialized focus on special education, speech pathology, or interaction with families of students.

Thus it is that Susanne Griffin should be terminated in the position of Chief Academic Officer at the Minneapolis Public Schools, with prospects for transfer into a position more consonant with her training, experience, talents, and compassionate nature.