Fix Education - Put Students First "Blah, Blah, Blah" - Mackinac Island Conference, Student Debt ...

Michelle Rhee at the annual "Blah, Blah Blah" MACKINAC ISLAND Conference in Michigan stated this week ““We have to begin to see education as a bipartisan issue — one that we can all come together on,” she said. “The politics of education have become more polarized than anything else.” Ms. Rhee has always been guided by one core principle: put students first.

Read the full story –

http://www.freep.com/article/20130530/NEWS06/305300105

Former Governor Jeb Bush also spoke at the conference on education – “The one thing clear about former Florida governor and national education advocate Jeb Bush’s ideas about education is this: Students must come first.

He said there is nothing about Detroit’s public schools that cannot be fixed if officials focus on students, rather than teachers and politics.”

Read the full story – http://www.freep.com/article/20130529/OPINION/305290091/Jeb-Bush-education-Mackinac-Policy-Conference

qualityg says…

Each year, Michigan's political and business leaders gather on Mackinac Island for the annual Mackinac Policy Conference put on by the Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce. They come together to discuss critical issues affecting the state, such as education and creating growth to Michigan’s job market.



More than 1,500 people will spend the next three days at the luxurious Grand Hotel listening to a variety of business, political and keynote speakers. Blah, Blah, Blah. I’m not opposed (except for the cost to taxpayers) to trying to come up with plans of action and strategies but year after year we hear and read the same thing and nothing changes except the continued failure of our education system and the rising rate of student debt that faces our country.

I am so tired of the posturing on both sides of the political party and the hostage holding they do when it comes to critical issues like education and how much taxes we pay. They won’t be happy until we are “truly” a second class nation that continues to spiral downward when it comes to future of our children and the foundation of our country.

Here is the crying Mantra for folks to talk about education and everyone says yes, yes, and yes and that is to put students first - Blah, Blah, Blah...

Look -yes of course we must put students first but that is NOT enough! There must be a partner ship and I have built a process to do this called the Cabrini Dream Mentor Program Click Here - www.dreammentorprogram.com . It is based on the simple partnership concept that follows:

 

Click on Pic to Enlarge

Please click here for more...
http://qualityg.blogspot.com/search/label/Dream%20Mentor


Rochelle Riley the Detroit Free Press Columnist wrote that Governor (Michigan) Snyder said “It's about the kids. That’s the way we need to start this. It’s about helping these kids grow,” said Gov. Rick Snyder, who said he made multiple visits to EAA schools. “This is a big deal, changing the lives of those kids.”

Ms. Riley writes about the Educational Achievement Authority (EAA) school system in Detroit where they have taken some controversial educational concepts and are applying them to measure change on how their students are being taught.

"The biggest difference in the EAA and other schools is that it eliminates grade levels and instead teaches children based on their learning levels."

qg says... Good for them and Dr. Deming would be proud!

See Full Article - http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2013305300101

Student Debt

I read this on 5/31/13 …

On July 1, more than 7 million college kids will see their federal student loan rates double unless Congress reaches a compromise to avert the looming hike. Given the recent track record of the legislative branch, that may not be a comforting proposition. But in this case history offers a glimmer of hope. A year ago, amid a tight presidential campaign, Barack Obama was able to use the presidential bully pulpit to pressure Congressional Republicans into postponing the planned rate spike for 12 months. Now, with federal subsidies again set to sunset in a month, Obama gathered a group of college kids in the sweltering Rose Garden Friday morning in a bid to force Republicans to bend. “If this sounds like deja vu all over again, that’s because it is,” Obama said. “We went through this, and eventually Congress listened to all the parents and young people who said, Don’t double my rate.”

To read the full article –
http://swampland.time.com/2013/05/31/obama-kicks-off-campaign-to-stop-student-loan-spike/



I believe any student who has student debt from a “so-called” Institute of Higher Learning should not have to pay the loan back unless Institute of Higher Learning can prove they are cost efficient and effective.

The following chart compares Institute of Higher Learning

	For-Profit Institute of Higher Learning	Non-Profit Institute of Higher Learning
Types of Education	Inclined to focus more on technical or vocational education	Inclined to be more academic or research-oriented
Types of Degrees	Variety from associate’s to doctoral degrees; can more rapidly implement degree programs in critical areas such as information technology, health care, or security studies	Choice from associate’s to doctoral degrees
Length of Program	Highly flexible schedules that sometimes allow students to finish faster; graduation rates are typically lower than non-profit schools	In-classroom education can take years, but online components may accelerate program completion
Cost	Typically more expensive than non-profit counterparts. Student loan defaults are higher	Costs fluctuate, with state schools usually costing less than private schools

The difference between For-Profits and Not-for-Profits colleges is the school mission. For-Profit colleges operate like other businesses. They are backed by investors, and they work towards a profit. Not-for-Profit schools may charge similar tuition prices, but all of the proceeds are put back into the schools.

For example – Most State and Private colleges/universities are publically (government) funded.

Non-profit private institutions receive far less government funding, but they are still considered non-profit because the money they bring in goes straight back into the school to improve their programs, hire well qualified faculty, maintain their campus facilities, offer student services, etc.

For-profit private schools (University of Phoenix, ITT Tech, Everest, Kaplan, Sylvan, etc.) are corporations. The money they bring in doesn't go back into the school; rather, it goes into the pockets of the corporate owners and investors.

http://wallstcheatsheet.com/stocks/10-worst-states-for-college-graduates-in-student-debt.html/?a=viewall

Thanks for allowing me to vent - Blah, Blah, Blah…

Our Education Systems must develop a Hive/Colony Mindset

When and where did our education system go astray? When I started school there was no pre-school, head start or pre-kindergarten. Graduating with a Bachelor degree was not yet a must after high school and a graduate degree was not in vogue.

With Computers, PDAs, Internet and social networks in a variety of modes I would expect most of our children to be college and career ready http://www.betterhighschools.org/CCR/overview.asp as never before in our nation’s history. Yet, according to national studies the opposite is true (75 Percent of Students “Not Ready” For College). http://www.usnews.com/education/blogs/high-school-notes/2012/08/22/high-school-students-not-prepared-for-college-career What's going on?

In my humble opinion, there is no system in our schools (public, parochial, charter, community colleges, four-year colleges, vocational). All of our schools should have a common aim and must be interdependent upon each other using a “Hive/Colony Mindset (working toward the common good)” with cooperation and communication vital for success.

Unfortunately, our education system continues to be sub-optimized and chaos reigns with a “What’s In It For Me” attitude that runs rampant through each school. Schools are closing at a rapid pace and charter schools are popping up in laser fashion. My concern is by “What Method”? Are we to continue to force parents to send their children to poor producing schools?

A big problem that exists is the competition between our schools at every level from K-20 and the most dangerous is the competition between schools in our nation, states, dioceses and districts. Cooperation is what is needed so that our whole system succeeds, and then competition can take effect. Did you ever stop and think about all the so-called leaders involved in our educational system. Look at your own school. Is your school’s purpose “really” defined? How many leaders are involved (Superintendent, Principles, School Board, Unions, Parent Groups and State and Federal Government) in setting policy? Who is/are the true leader(s)? There has and always will be an on-going struggle between state and federal rights when it comes to education (among other things).

Why is there not a national effort to find the best run school systems and replicate them across the country with a well thought out designed plan for implementation? Why are there no national/local leaders with real authority?

The new Common-Core Standards are the latest attempt to fix the education problems. In concept I believe they are an excellent idea. However, I will tell you that Teachers while supportive of the common core standards have not been given the training or support to generate the enthusiasm or leadership to make it happen.

http://qualityg.blogspot.com/2012/08/common-core-standards-by-what-method.html

The "Jesus Syndrome" is alive and well

During my years spent in the business world I never had a fondness for outside consultants. Most of them seemed to gather information from internal workers and then in a fancy fashion produce a glossy report that costs millions of dollars and gave it to the executive team for implementation with the offer to guide the working team through a change or transformation. It was just hard to understand why the company would spend so much money to an outside group when the answers were right under their noses.

Often the outside consultant’s suggestions were met with barrier ridden internal anguish that literally stopped any kind of process improvement efforts that might benefit the customers. I was an internal quality and process improvement consultant for years and my team also met roadblocks and anguish at every level of the organization when change was needed.

Dr. Deming said “Change comes from outside the system.”

What I learned the hard way was that it takes a systems thinking person/team that can see the end-to-end- process and how all the parts are interdependent upon each other to improve the overall process/system for the benefit of the customers. Just as important the finding from this type of analysis must be made in an unemotional manner where the outcomes benefit the system as a whole. This thinking cannot be met with internal people/workers who are blinded as to how the changes will affect them personally.

However, the actual work and changes that must be done requires the subject matter expertise of the internal workers since they know how best to do the job. The key is to mesh the outside analysis with internal expertise and to educate and partner with each other as to the benefits of the whole through the eyes of the customer. This takes a strong leader to make this happen and the work cannot be delegated by the executive team. They must lead the efforts for lasting change to take place. If they do not have the time to do this then the change is not required. What could be more important?

Dr. Shewhart said “Changes that result in improvement come from application of knowledge.”

Over the years I called it the “Jesus Syndrome.” Luke 4:24, 28–29

24 And he said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country.

28 And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath,

29 And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong.

Our Education System in the United States is riddled with this kind of thinking both within a school and then with the school’s home district. Administrators, Counselors and Teachers are convinced they each have the answers and any kind of change will only result in failure. Perhaps as I have found it has to do more with additional work and comfort zone than it does with the change.

Note: When I mentor students about College and Career Readiness I often hear a parent say " See he is telling you the same thing I have been telling you." You see because I am from outside the system the student tends to believe me more than the Parent.

What the stakeholder’s folks need to understand the lasting change that must be done needs to be done in a systemic manner that requires a team effort that must be done in the summer where time is more readily available and then the probable changes/solutions need to be tested in the upcoming school year.

Another Bastion of resistance from any outside change or interference is in the Federal, State and Local Government. The best example of this type of inexcusable representation of leadership is what is going on in Washington with Budget Plans - http://finance.yahoo.com/news/fiscal-pain-parceled-unevenly-022500066.html

Look at the City of Detroit who for years and years will not take ownership of their problems and refuses to understand systems thinking and what it means to represent their customers.

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130301/METRO01/303010421/Detroit-council-report-calls-an-EM-appointment-premature-?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130301/OPINION03/303010339/Business-leaders-ready-embrace-gov-s-likely-announcement-Detroit-emergency-manager?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

Take a step back people and get over yourselves – you are not that important. There is more at stake than your insecurities and self-esteem.

Why I Still Like Girl's Basketball - Season Over

End of an ERA,

May 2017,

Coach Ro Calls it a Career

I had the privilege of coaching with Mike for over 10 years in a number of capacities. We go back even further when we both coached CYO basketball. He coached my son in both CYO and High School before heading to Cabrini where we met up again.

He is superb coach but he is a better Father, Husband, Teacher and FRIEND!

Mike Rozanski has been coaching Cabrini girls basketballfor the better part of 20 years.  After this past season Coach Ro, as he’s affectionately referred to, has decided step away from the coaching ranks.  Coach Ro will be missed! The St. Frances Cabrini community thanks him for his dedication and passion towards girls basketball and wishes him the best of luck!  Below are some career achievements for Mike Rozanski:

-Won nine MHSAA district titles
-Won two MHSAA regional titles
-Five time MHSAA regional finalist
-Two MHSAA state final fours
-Six Catholic League division titles
-Twelve players went on to play in college
-Nine all state players
-Four time Catholic League division coach of year
-Two Catholic League Championships

SEASON EIGHT - New Beginnings

To read the seven previous seasons click on the label to the left on the main page where where it says "Girls Basketball" or click

 http://qualityg.blogspot.com/search/label/Girls%20Basketball

JULY - 2013

We attended our summer team camp last week and just like previous years we learned a lot about what to expect for our upcoming season. I would have to say the coaches were expecting some better results but yet we were not surprised at the outcome.

This is basically a new team from last year that will need to develop their own identity and develop an internal leadership group that must lead the team both on and off the court.

We continue to lack size but we are more experienced in some key positions. The summer workouts have been good and I have added some speed and agility drills that hopefully create quicker hands and feet that we must have to play solid team defense this year.

Our summer workout sessions have been well attended and learning continues to take place at each practice.

November - 2013

We have concluded our 4 Player Workouts and had a good turnout to work on their individual skills.
This week we are concluding our try-outs and should have a good nucleus of players from 10th - 12th grade.

Team Leadership will be a factor going forward to determine which players want to take the lead and what players will be voted to be the leaders. In other years this was predictable but not this year.

I must say that if I was to pick a saying for this year it is:

PRACTICE HARD and PLAY HARDER!

How Hard? By putting everything you got in to each practice and a little more into each game going forward by being better than you were the day before - cc

December - 2013

The team may have lost our best defensive player and senior captain to injury. We are waiting on the MRI and the doctor to determine the extent of the injury. Nothing affects me more than seeing a player work so hard and go down to injury (especially senior year). Others will have to step-up if we are to be successful this year.

We had a five team scrimmage last week and we got beat up pretty good both physically and mentally. There are always good things to learn from these situations and we now have a good sense who can handle pressure and who is tough when it comes to pushing oneself beyond the norm.

First Game - We won our first game against a team that was not very good. What I especially liked was the play of a few players who really crashed the boards and got some easy put backs through hard work and hustle.

February - 2014

We are now 7-7 and we have again been riddled with injuries but in truth that is the nature of sports and not to be used as an excuse. We play in a tough league and if you are not prepared or have "Basketball Players" on your team it is very difficult to win tournaments, leagues and championships.

Basketball Players are those who work on their game all year long and especially in the off season to get in daily defensive drills and shooting work (200-300 shots). Fundamentals must be taught early (5th grade on...) because too much time going over blocking out, closing out, defensive position and multiple offenses and defenses in daily practices in high school proves futile. If I can't add or subtract what good does it do concentrating on multiplication and division and story problems that required deducing the facts? Just like in the classroom there is a wide knowledge gap between those that get it and those that do not. To win you must have at least 7-8 players who get it and are on the same page. The result is you beat teams that you should and lose to teams that you should. Thus - you have a 500 season.

It's very simple -
"For the most part you can not improve your game while preparing to play the next game"

February 27,  2014

Unfortunately we lost our first game in the state tournament and our season is over. Our local paper did a nice pictorial and video shoot of the game that can be found at:
http://www.miprepzone.com/thenewsherald/results.asp?ID=9450

I will miss the girls

This will be the last Post of this series. It's been a good run and for the most part fun.

SEASON SEVEN - RACK ATTACK!

To read the six previous seasons click on the label to the left on the main page where where it says "Girls Basketball" or click

 http://qualityg.blogspot.com/search/label/Girls%20Basketball

Tryouts are over and it is now time to build a team that lost 8 seniors - Ouch! We had a good summer camp with better than expected results that provides an outlook with promise for the upcoming season.

With any new young team we will struggle against bigger and more mature teams but we will let each team know they have been in a game. The coach is implementing new offense - RACK ATTACK and defensive schemes that fit our athletic abilities.

Stay Tuned...

Updated - 12/1/12 - RIP Big John

We had our first game last Thursday. We lost the game. The big gap was that our trusted friend and scorekeeper was not there for the first time in over 10 years. John passed away a few months back and I miss him dearly. He was a good friend who accompanied me on scouting trips and we had a blast rating the concessions stands at each game we attended. The following tribute was made to John at his funeral:

 

Mr. Noland (John) was an avid supporter of the Lady Monarchs Girls Basketball program, driving to any location we played, in any weather, regardless of his own commitments. He had been a member of the Cabrini Lady Monarchs as a scorekeeper, scout, and friend and assisted with scorekeeping going back to his daughter's Brandi and Amber's playing days in CYO as 5th -6th graders. He frequently adjusted his work schedule at Ford Motor to fit in his basketball duties. He was faithful in bringing all the coaches their "Away game meals" that his wife Sandi would graciously make prior to long rides to Cardinal Mooney, Waterford, or wherever. He served our program for over 10 years after his last daughter graduated, and his absence will leave a gaping hole in our program. God must have been starting a new basketball team and needed some help. He found a good man to do so!

He will be missed at our games as we look to the scoring table but will remain in our hearts forever.

Updated 12/29/12 - Christmas Tournament

Our record is now 3 wins and 2 losses. We beat our cross-town rivals on 12/21/12 and then had two games in a Christmas Tournament. We got blown away in the opening game by 30 points and came back and won last night's game by 20 points.

A couple of our girls were unable to attend the first game but that was no excuse for the lack of effort and intensity that was put out by our team (we were down 18 - 3 in the 1st quarter).

The practice in between the games stressed defensive pressure, blocking out and basic fundamentals were pounded in to the team.

The team responded the way we hope to play each of our games for the second game and it showed.


Updated 1/23/13 - Half Way

We are currently 4 - 7 at the mid way point of our season. We won an overtime thriller last night to get our first league win and hopefully that will get us going for the remainder of our season. We have some very tough games in the next few weeks and we will have to play our best to compete and win.

The good news is we see progress in some of our players that is vital because they are Sophomores and Juniors.

Updated 2/16/13 - Still Struggling - but two in a row

Our record is now 6-12 but we have won our last two games. Last night was Poster night which is always a fun night made better with a nice crowd and a win. Honoring our three seniors was also part of the event.

We now have one game remaining before the State Playoffs begin one week from Monday. We have a Top 5 team in our District but first we must win our first round game.

Updated 2/28/13 - Season Over

The Season is over and we finished 7-14. We won our first District game but lost to a state ranked team. The girls played hard (down by 4 at half) but we just did not match-up well with the team that pulled away from us mid-way through the 3rd quarter.

The Banquet is in a few weeks and then it is back to the drawing board on how to improve this team going forward. Hopefully maturity and some good off season work ethic will get some players to be ready for next year.

2012 Most Popular Posts

2012 is gone and I would like to thank the 76,000 plus visitors to my Blog this past year (up 29,000+ from last year). I hope the information I have provided has been useful and beneficial.

As I look over the stats the following are the most searched on topics within my site for 2012:

 

Entry	Pageviews
Cursive Writing should be taught in Art Class May 8, 2011, 8 comments	383
2010 Corporate Quality Business Plan Goals & Objec... Dec 15, 2009, 9 comments	73
Employee Goals & Objectives & Performance Appraisa... Dec 10, 2009, 4 comments	21
Common Sense Steps to Creating a Quality Controlle... Sep 3, 2008, 1 comment	19
2012 Army vs Navy Football Game - 11 in a ROW! - U... Dec 9, 2012, 11 comments	15
Governor Snyder - "Dashboard Metrics" - HUH! May 5, 2011	15
"Employee Goals & Objectives for 2008" Oct 26, 2007	13
SIPOC Analysis Questions Mar 22, 2007, 2 comments	7
The Hiring Process is the most important process i... Sep 13, 2007, 1 comment	7
The Story of "FRED" the Stinky Moose Oct 7, 2006, 5 comments	6

Thank You and Best Wishes for a New Year!

qualityg