Who else remembers the glory days when Sanders-Clyde made great strides in its test scores? Why, [former Superintendent] McGinley was so impressed that she made its principal head of two schools [Sanders-Clyde and the now closed Fraser] simultaneously. [McGinley] supposedly had no clue regarding the scandal that finally came out of the closet--organized changing of answers on the tests. And the principal was allowed to escape to a district in North Carolina.Hello! This is exactly what Atlanta's school leaders were convicted of.
Before the sad results of cheating at Sanders-Clyde came to light (thanks to a state investigation, not our local district's), one local reporter lauded Principal MiShawna Moore as the "Miracle Worker":
She obsesses about the possibility of Sanders-Clyde's scores dropping while Fraser's improve or of Fraser getting only slightly better while Sanders-Clyde's scores worsen. That thought makes her sit in her office on weekends and cry. Last year, she cried for four days when she realized Sanders-Clyde missed an excellent rating by just 33 students."Cried for four days"? Juxtapose those compliments with the expose that followed. Evidently, what she really worried about was getting caught.
She fears what the media and community will say about the schools, and she sees any blame as resting squarely on her shoulders. She worries about teachers feeling disappointed because they already have suffered so much scrutiny and criticism.
She was caught but maintained her innocence. The evidence? "The state released Palmetto Achievement Challenge Test results [in 2009] that showed massive drops in test scores at Sanders-Clyde, a high-poverty downtown school previously recognized for its students' impressive achievement. The test score decline coincided with stringent district oversight of the school's testing, a first for the school." Moore claimed that decline occurred because strangers were in the classroom. Yeah, right.
Whatever happened to MiShawna Moore? After about a year in North Carolina she, believe it or not, returned to Atlanta, where she grew up. You can't make this stuff up.
Here's a recent bio:
Dr. MiShawna Moore joined Families First in November 2011, as the Program Coordinator for School Success. Prior to coming to Families First, MiShawna served as an Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction, a principal, and teacher, where she earned “Teacher of the Year” and the “Community Motivator Award”. Since returning to Atlanta in 2010, MiShawna has mentored several pre-service teachers, taught parenting classes in the community and volunteered with numerous agencies. MiShawna holds a Doctorate degree in Educational Leadership from Walden University, where she concentrated in Teacher Leadership, and holds three Master level degrees in PK-8 Education, Educational Administration and Supervision and Higher Education and Administration.
She's "mentoring pre-service teachers"? Good grief!
Perhaps you need to look to Geraldine Middleton, a former associate superintendent in CCSD. She's the person who gave Moore a job as an assistant superintendent in Halifax County, NC when Moore was under fire, pointing out that nothing was proven. According to Middleton, "MiShawna D. Moore, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction is working to communicate with the public and staff about student test scores and the meaning of the numbers. Moore is currently designing and implementing new programs to bring up student test scores and to get the staff and community more involved." Well, that statement can be viewed through the prism of her experience at Sanders-Clyde!
Once she had hired Moore in 2008, Middleton became embroiled in a data-driven scandal in North Carolina, After stating repeatedly she would stick with Halifax, she escaped to Chicago in 2009 with a $160,000 job, "one of the highest paid and most powerful" in the Chicago school system. That's Chicago. Need I say more? By 2010 Middleton was under fire there for her "data" and left. Now she's an educational consultant in North Carolina, using "data" to turn around schools.
At least in Atlanta the students injured by this cheating have gotten some justice. The same cannot be said for those in the Charleston County School District, especially the Sanders-Clyde students and parents who were fooled into believing they were achieving.
It was all on McGinley's watch. Data-driven, indeed.
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2 comments:
MiShawna Moore was an awesome administrator at Sanders Clyde. She knew every student, every parent and every home environment because she practically LIVED at that school. I've never known a more dedicated administrator and I would work for her ANYWHERE!
I agree with that. She was motivated, dedicated and determined. They were lucky to have her.
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