The Madison school district’s response to the roiling brawls on Monday
Blaska’s Top Line: Somehow, we thought the school district had a safety plan. But they’re still working on developing one. (Highlighted emphasis is ours.)
Madison Metropolitan School District
Dear East students, families, and staff,
Last night and this morning, I communicated with you about some immediate actions we were taking to ensure the safety and security of East students and staff in response to continuing student conflicts, and subsequent rumors of more violence circulating on social media. As a follow up, I would like to report we had a safe, calm, and productive day of learning at East High School today.
In order for our scholars to learn, they must feel safe, respected, and welcome. We are working diligently to ensure all of our learning spaces are places where students and staff can thrive. To this end, East and district staff have been working collaboratively over the last several days to refine short-term and long-term safety plans at East High.
I would like to share with you some of the strategies East will be implementing moving forward to ensure our school maintains a supportive learning environment:
Modifications of East Safety and Supervision Plans
- We are making modifications to our open lunch supervision, and clarifying teacher supervision assignments for club times during lunch.
- We have adjusted start and end times in the work schedules of behavior response staff to increase supervision, and support during school opening and school dismissal.
- We are working to identify additional staff who can provide hallway supervision during passing times.
- We are increasing our collaboration with student leaders to uplift their voices in developing solutions.
- Our restorative justice personnel are assisting with student re-entry meetings to facilitate the rebuilding of relationships.
Additional Central Office Presence
- Central Office staff, including student and staff support leaders, are being placed at East to provide a greater safety and security presence, while directly supporting our building leadership team.
- To support our plan for increased supervision before school, lunch, and after school, multiple central office staff are working out of East’s campus.
- Central Office communications team members are working on-site at East to support our efforts to communicate with students, staff, and families in a timely manner.
- The Office of Student and Staff Support (district level) is providing additional resources to support students who are experiencing trauma. The individual support and counseling provided will involve restorative processes; mental health interventions; and safety planning. This support is being coordinated with community resources and providers.
Community Collaboration
- We have identified community partners who will assist in addressing issues in the community which are spilling over into our schools.
- We are working with a number of established community leaders, organizations, and advocates to create opportunities for them to have a long-term, positive presence on school grounds during key transition times.
Learning occurs best when school culture and climate is warm, inviting, and positive. We are working to ensure our students feel safe and secure. In the upcoming weeks, we will continue to inform, refine, strategize, and collaborate with you to ensure all our scholars have an opportunity to learn in spaces which promote their academic and social-emotional growth.
Thank you for your support, patience, and partnership. Sincerely,Mikki D. Smith
Interim Principal
Education
Blaska Policy Werkes 
Do you see what I see in all of this lack of discipline in our schools?
It has become the norm for people to grow up thinking that there will be no consequences for their actions. Nearly every day you can read about a car break-in, car thefts, shootings, killings, people being beat up in broad daylight on the streets of our community.
We used to have such a nice community here in Madison. I never used to worry about going all over the city at any time of day. Now, I won’t go to areas that I know that trouble may find me anytime of the day or night.
We the citizens are to blame for this. Voting for such weak people to be the leaders of our community. Voting for such weak people to be on our school board.
As the saying goes: You get what you pay for.
I’ll add to that by saying: You get what you vote for.
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I agree. It is appalling what has happened to this city.
Huge swaths of Madison are hideous eyesores. Other areas look like rundown ghost-town type areas or straight-up nasty garbage dumps.
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I say it is time to put Freedom Inc. in charge of East H.S. They want control of things because they’re certain they know a better way regarding, well, virtually everything.
Maybe they really can elevate test scores and have black students reading and figuring at grade level all while maintaining a secure and peaceful environment and so what if white students are severely marginalized because that is acceptable collateral damage in the interest of victimology and equity. Anyway, white people are bad people and deserve it!
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Batman,
I like your thoughts on this issue. One thing I would want to see if we let Freedom Inc. run the schools, and we’ll start with East High School, is to have a group of people to objectively measure the results of Freedom Inc. running the school.
What we need to do now is erase any remaining thought that race is a factor at East High School. To do so, I would propose in addition to your excellent suggestion is that we have a board of people none of which who are white, be the ones measuring the results of the policies and the curriculum at the High School.
This board should be made up from the following people.
Larry Elder
Dr. Thomas Sowell
Lieutenant Governor elect Winsome Sears
Supreme Court Judge Clarence Thomas
Professor and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
United States Senator Tim Scott
and Dr. Ben Carson.
That should make up a fine group of people to ensure that all of the students who are attending East High School are really getting the education they deserve.
(They can decide amongst themselves who will be the board president but we will make all votes based on a simple majority, and all discussions and votes to be available to the public on line in real time.)
After saying this, my only question to the school board and those running the MMSD would be: Would you be willing to have a board of these outstanding individuals be the ones to decide if the policies and the curriculum at East High School are really advancing the education of all the students at East High School?
What say you?
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Yes, Dave, every/anything but discipline!
Consider the experience of current administrators (and teachers). No military experience. Never had to face real problems or real work in their lives. Never cut/split 10 logger cords of wood for winter heat; never worked behind a traditional hay baler. Never milked a herd of dairy cows. Never filled or emptied a manure bucket. Their world of work and responsibility was to use a pencil sharpener before taking a fill-in-the-dot test.
Military service in WWII and Korea had powerful ancillary effect of teaching Self Discipline and the idea that 88% is a FAIL. In what occupation, aside from education, are educational proficiency percentages adequate? 30-40% proficiency for a dentist, a surgeon, an auto mechanic, a baker, or _____________?
NONE. Schools do not prepare students for life beyond the playpen.
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Nationally Progressives accede to Obama’s “Do not punish AA kids” mandate.
Madison is plagued by gang banger shoot outs and carjacking. Puts offenders back on the streets with ludicrously low consequences, repeatedly.
Madison Progs tell police to stand down in the face of George Floyd riots and trashing downtown.
MMSD and Freedom Inc. remove LEO’s from schools and tell teachers and principals not to punish gang bangers.
Twenty plus cops required repeatedly to break up fights (gently as possible) that were admirably deterred by one or two LEOs.
AA’s graduating and reading at grade level going down like Kamala.
I guess this is what they mean by rethinking policing.
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No wonder young blacks have no restraint, no self-control and no discipline, … they’ve never had a strong, manly-man role model. Over 70% of blacks have been raised with no father at home.
When blacks married the government welfare state, there was no longer a need for a father.
“You cannot take any people, of any color, and exempt them from the requirements of civilization, … including work, behavioral standards, personal responsibility and all the other basic things that the clever intelligentsia disdain, … without ruinous consequences to them and to society at large.” — Dr. Thomas Sowell. Good thing Dr. Thomas Sowell is a black American.
A person of pallor couldn’t speak these inconvenient truths without being called a racist.
Truth is, in exchange for their vote, many blacks have sold their souls for 30 pieces of silver. Now they’re generationally dependent on Lefty largesse; given crumbs from their master’s tables, occupying their safe spaces, and kept comfortably numb in the caring custodial confines of defining deviancy down and the soft bigotry of low expectations.
When will blacks grow tired of all the Lefty paternalizing and proglobotic political pandering?
When will they remove their stylin’ victimhoodies and dare step off the Plantation Porch?
When will they grow up and take responsibility as free, fully-franchised American citizens?
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A school in another state was having constant fighting.
A group of Black dads organized and volunteered to patrol the hallways and to date, the fighting in that school has ceased.
That is the problem and the solution, rolled into one, right there.
70% of Black kids live in homes without dads.
That’s much of the problem.
But Matriarchal Madison will NEVER allow discussion of this problem, nor the solution that other school permitted.
While Matriarchal Madison wrings her hands, bemoans “The Babies” criminally misbehaving, pleads for more government money, policy, and 75-point “safety plans” — the absence of dads is the REAL problem.
And the presence of masculine father figures goes a long way to solving it.
Don’t wait for the MIA school board of colour to ever admit that, Matriarchal Madison.
Keep wringing your hands, cry harder for more government, throw more money at the problem, and plead with “The Babies” to stop fighting because it makes Mama Madison sad.
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Bingo.
“Keep wringing your hands, cry harder for more government, throw more money at the problem, and plead with “The Babies” to stop fighting because it makes Mama Madison sad.”
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Band-aids, Aspirin & foot massages….. It’s the culture, stupid….
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Anyone remember Malcolm Shabazz alternative school in fabled old Madison? Behaviorally “challenged” under achievers were sent there. My brother went, everyone learned how to act badly and one day get a GED if they wanted a job. Maybe it didn’t turn them around but it allowed the other schools to function at a far better level.
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