Extension Denied
Comments (0) As expected, the Board of Ed voted against Dr. Kishimoto’s contract extension request, 7-0.
One board member abstained and the other was absent.
Category: superintendent
Comments (0) 
Superintendent’s Future in Hartford
By Kerri Provost, June 18, 2013 10:55 am
Last week, Dr. Kishimoto sent a letter to Mayor Pedro Segarra and to Matt Poland, Chair of the Board of Education, requesting her contract with the Hartford Public Schools be extended through the end of school year 2015-2016.
Letter to the Mayor and BOE Chair
Kishimoto has asked that the Board of Education vote on this tonight. Sources say she has no votes in her favor. In 2012, she received low marks on her evaluation.
Hartford Schools: The Bonus Round
Comments Off According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median household income in Hartford between 2006-2010 was $28,970; the average per capita income for the same period was $16,798. People living below the poverty rate: 32.1%
Knowing that the rate of concentrated poverty is one of the highest in the nation, it may seem as if something is out of place when the Superintendent — who makes decisions for a student body, most of whom are eligible for free or reduced school lunch — through her lawyers, makes demands for a bonus which is more than what many families in the school district earn in one year.
Though Dr. Kishimoto backed down after receiving criticism for demanding a $15,450 bonus following a failing performance review, the language of her messages to the press indicates a sense of entitlement to a possible $30,000 bonus, regardless of the quality of her work.
But the amount of money being doled out in the form of bonuses does not end with Kishimoto deciding not to pursue one through her lawyers. Continue reading 'Hartford Schools: The Bonus Round'»
Superintendent’s Evaluation Documents
Comments Off If you have too much time on your hands, you can read the review Kishimoto did for herself on July 19, the evaluation conducted and compiled by the Board of Education, and the superintendent’s response to the BOE evaluation on September 27, 2012.
Board Gives Superintendent Low Marks
By Kerri Provost, September 27, 2012 11:43 am
Those paying close attention to the relationship between the Hartford Board of Education and Superintendent Kishimoto knew this was a long time coming. Initially, the BOE was hesitant to speak up; one member of the school board said that because the Superintendent is female, they had tiptoed around in an effort to be sensitive to potential gender dynamics issues.
That free pass, however, has been tossed.
The Board of Education is recommending that Dr. Kishimoto “pursue services offered for additional professional development,” to address areas in which she received low grades from the board in her annual performance evaluation. Continue reading 'Board Gives Superintendent Low Marks'»
Milner/Jumoke Teachers Rejected MOU Because of Hiring Process
Comments Off The Hartford Office of Talent Management — the Hartford Public Schools’ version of human resources — was not involved in the interviews for teachers applying for positions at Milner/Jumoke, Andrea Johnson of the Hartford Federation of Teachers, explained in a message to the Superintendent. Dr. Michael Sharpe, the Chief Executive Office of Jumoke Academy, conducted the interviews and made hiring decisions. According to Johnson, teachers at Milner/Jumoke have “legitimate concerns about the lack of honesty on the part of their new employer.”
Newly hired teachers attending orientation during the week of August 13th had not received acceptance letters from Hartford, Johnson says. These were letters that teachers should have been sent to sign. After learning about this, Natasha Durrant of the Office of Talent Management was tasked with sending the letters.
Fast forward another week.
Newly hired teachers disclose to the Hartford Federation of Teachers in a meeting about the Memorandum of Understanding — to which the HFT had agreed — that they were not informed during the hiring process that they would be required to work additional days during the summer months. Continue reading 'Milner/Jumoke Teachers Rejected MOU Because of Hiring Process'»
Turnaround Plan for Milner? Not All On Board
By Kerri Provost, September 18, 2012 9:41 am
Teachers at Milner/Jumoke, one of the schools absorbed into the Commissioner’s Network, did not ratify the Memorandum of Understanding — a move that has stirred the Superintendent to threaten holding the Hartford Federation of Teachers union accountable and taking the matter to arbitration. According to state law, the matter would go to expedited arbitration if rejected by teachers; it is not driven there by the Superintendent. Continue reading 'Turnaround Plan for Milner? Not All On Board'»
Milner Applies to Commissioner’s Network; Questions Remain
By Kerri Provost, July 30, 2012 10:22 am
As much of Milner’s future remains unclear, the Hartford Public Schools’ has begun to acknowledge some of the ways in which the school will change as it becomes part of the Commissioner’s Network and is managed by Jumoke Academy. Continue reading 'Milner Applies to Commissioner’s Network; Questions Remain'»
Fussing Over Test Scores
By Kerri Provost, July 19, 2012 9:19 am
By reading messages sent to the press by the Hartford Public Schools, you would think that standardized testing had some kind of positive, meaningful impact on children’s education. No fewer than four messages have been sent, hyping the release of the district’s 2012 CMT and CAPT scores:
Sent on July 17, 2012
Dissecting Turnaround
By Kerri Provost, June 20, 2012 10:36 am
On the heels of a press release about why the news media must not conflate CREC schools with Hartford Public Schools, the latter sent communication about how the State, with its Commissioner’s Network, may help to confuse the public even more on the question of who is running the show. Here it is, dissected:
Former Hartford Mayor Thirman L. Milner today urged the State Department of Education to include the Hartford public school that bears his name on the list of schools that will be on the $7.5 million Commissioner’s Network for the coming school year.
This is not the first time Mr. Milner has issued the complaint that the school with his name was “embarrassing” to him. No ink has been spilled over how students feel when they hear their school creates an embarrassment.
The network was created at part of the education reform legislation passed by the state legislature earlier this year to turn around schools, such as the Milner Core Knowledge Academy at 104 Vine Street, considered one of the 25 lowest-performing schools in Connecticut. An announcement on the first group of network schools is expected shortly.
This will not be Milner’s first experience as a turnaround school. In 2008, it was reopened as a Core Knowledge Academy, with Dr. Kishimoto — the assistant superintendent at the time — saying, “Our first and foremost goal is to get a significant increase in student achievement.” Continue reading 'Dissecting Turnaround'»