So here are the numbers of what it will cost to fix all the facilities — with the exception of the Historic Alameda High School — if we were just to repair all of the identified problems in existing campuses.
The summary:
And the breakdown by type of repair:
And just because graphs are so fun, I dropped the numbers into an infogram, this one doesn’t have much clicky fun things so the screen shots are below:
It’s broken down by High and Middle Schools, Elementary Schools, and other facilities:
Blogging Bayport Alameda 
If there’s that much wrong with Ruby Bridges, there must be somebody we can sue. Almost $737k in fixes needed in civil, architectural, and electrical? The school is seven years old. If it were a housing development, you can bet there would be a lawsuit. This is not general wear and tear. Somebody screwed up.
Comment by Denise Shelton — June 18, 2013 @ 7:34 am
How many readers of this blog went to the meetings to discuss the future of the historic high school building?
Comment by A Neighbor — June 18, 2013 @ 7:41 am
nice stink hole ! now let’s shift the AFD package a bit the main offices closing , their allocations for out of town or staff recrational activity , the vehicles pool and we have a positive balance ….every Alamedan treated for a BBQ or pancake ,,,,,
what do they mean by architectural? it is a pretty specific term used on a very generic way
Comment by mijoka — June 18, 2013 @ 7:41 am
I wonder how much of this work could be done–properly, of course, and to professional standards–by skilled volunteers. many of us have remodeled homes and have skills and time we could willingly donate to AUSD in order to effect some of these repairs and upgrades, assuming that we cold do so legally. Volunteers might be able to lower some of the heavy costs listed in the pretty charts….
Comment by Jon Spangler — June 18, 2013 @ 10:44 am
But before we build the teachers new bricks and mortar structures let’s make sure we fix the the hole between their ears.
“….. America, where virtually anyone who graduates from college can become a teacher, and where job security, not teacher excellence, defines the workforce culture. According to the consulting firm McKinsey, “The U.S. attracts most of its teachers from the bottom two-thirds of college classes, with nearly half coming from the bottom third.” And, today, more than a third of math teachers in the U.S. don’t have an undergraduate degree in math, let alone a Master’s degree. Yet, even with this remarkably low threshold for entry, once someone becomes a teacher in the U.S., it’s virtually impossible to remove him or her for poor performance.”
http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/01/the-case-for-a-teacher-bar-exam/267030/
Comment by Jack R — June 18, 2013 @ 5:36 pm
from Atlantic: “What explains this cross-national difference? It does not seem to be teacher pay. Although teacher salaries in Finland are slightly higher than the average salary there, they are comparable to teacher salaries in other European countries. And when adjusted for national price indices, they’re lower than teacher salaries in the U.S.”
Then just what is the average income in Finland and how much do they pay in taxes or receive in benefits like nationalized health care? Finnish teachers are slightly higher than average salary in Finland. Where are our teacher salaries compared to our average? Joel Klein is on the list of dubiously over celebrated “reformers” who may have even juked the numbers for New York City schools during his tenure by lowering the bar to manipulate them. Would he use selective statistics in an article like this?
The uniformity of standards for teaching sounds great but Finland isn’t composed of 50 states with vastly different cultures. Direct comparisons to relatively homogenous countries like Japan or Korea can be problematic. What are their immigrant populations and how many students first language is not English?
“Finland long ago decided to professionalize its teaching force to the point where teaching is now viewed on a par with other highly respected, learned professions like medicine and law.”
That’s medicine or law, not nanny or social worker.
Comment by M.I. — June 18, 2013 @ 6:13 pm
Want higher quality teachers? Pay them. Simple & effective.
Comment by dave — June 18, 2013 @ 6:20 pm
Want higher quality teachers? Make them pass a bar exam equivalent then pay them.
Comment by Jack Richard — June 18, 2013 @ 6:26 pm
http://billmoyers.com/2013/06/07/new-data-shows-school-reformers-are-getting-it-wrong/
Comment by M.I. — June 18, 2013 @ 6:28 pm
Well slap my head! It’s not the teachers who can’t teach or the kids who can’t learn, Billy Boy Moyers say’s all learning problems would be solved by giving the parents money.
Comment by Jack Richard — June 18, 2013 @ 6:41 pm
4. Sounds like a great career move.
Comment by Denise Shelton — June 18, 2013 @ 10:10 pm
Democratizing Higher Education
Next Big Thing Summit in Half Moon Bay
http://www.bloomberg.com/video/udacity-is-a-21st-century-university-thrun-LFNzUTpPQqeXmLYx__Aj_w.html
Comment by Don't shoot the messengers — June 19, 2013 @ 3:38 am
I will not get on the Teachers , most do a good job , I will take it on the administration based on the simple fact 90% of the times they have submitted inflated figures .
Sad part about it none of us can question their purchase and to who and why they went to such supplier , but them just like in the City we pay taxes , no one held them accountable . life does not need to be expensive .
Comment by mijoka — June 19, 2013 @ 4:01 pm
2. I attended one.
Comment by Denise Shelton — June 19, 2013 @ 5:51 pm
Meeting notes, please.
Comment by Jack Richard — June 19, 2013 @ 6:27 pm
10.. yeah that Moyers is a real dope. Anyweaqy, what I read wasn’t about giving the parents money it was about student families and low socio-economics being huge factors in education outcomes, bigger than teaching efficacy. And the article was written by David Sirota not Moyers.
12. that’s HIGHER education isn’t it? got to read and write before you get to Udacity. BTW, Bloomberg hired Joel Kline.
Comment by M.I. — June 19, 2013 @ 6:33 pm
Joel Kline works for News Corp
In a presentation at the UBS Global Media and Communication Conference, Klein outlined an American educational system—one teacher in a room of 25 kids, using minimal, if any, new technology—that he said not only fails students but “is a national security issue,” emphasizing that “if we don’t see a dramatic change to using technology in classes, the country won’t go forward.”
Klein’s point is that U.S. K-12 education is a “broken model,” with shockingly low graduation rates, “we spend a lot on education and do not see the results.” To change all this, Klein said, “the private sector’ has to be involved and that “technology will forever change how we teach students.” Klein said, “kids use media and technology of all kinds but they’re told they have to turn them all off when they get to school.”
http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/digital/devices/article/55012-news-corp-s-joel-klein-outlines-amplify-education-unit.html
Comment by Don't shoot the Messengers — June 19, 2013 @ 7:48 pm
As they said in the Midwest working for news corp and the murdoch gang ain’t no reference , when you tag along the shady UBS , your only audience is billy o’reilly , which greatest achievement or purpose is laxative for his friend rush Limbaugh the guy that buy oxycodone on the black market no wonder his rambling are somewhat warped and irrelevant , none of the above have much of an audience around here .
Problem in education , we are teaching irrelevant classes , Mr Klein we all know the track record for news corp ., please keep your tablets we do not need the Murdoch gang to brain wash out kids . Beside what is the relevance with a building architecture , you plan to epoxy them together and use them as doors ????
Comment by mijoka — June 19, 2013 @ 10:59 pm
uh how does ruby bridges already need 3/4 of a million in repair already lol
Comment by E — June 20, 2013 @ 8:26 am
Jack:
The agendas, written notes, and videos of all the meetings are available here:
http://www.alameda.k12.ca.us/cms/page_view?d=x&piid=&vpid=1345464038664
I still need to add the last video which documented the”shared Interest” meeting.
If you go to: http://alamedapublic.novusagenda.com, download the pdf for the May 28th board meeting, and scroll to page 491,
you can find the DRAFT report of the HAHS Community Engagement Project. It is a draft report pending sign off from all the stakeholders.
The final report has been delayed due to some personal medical issues. Hopefully, the final report will be posted in the next 30 days depending on my recovery rate.
If I can assist you in accessing the reports or provide additional information, please let me know.
Jeff Cambra – Facilitator
HAHS Community Engagement Project
Comment by Jeff Cambra — June 20, 2013 @ 4:12 pm