Tensions came to a head this spring, when Monte del Sol began working on a restructuring plan, per NCLB requirements. Ritchie says she held public input meetings on the plan in April and May. The plan had to be approved by Monte del Sol’s governing board by June and then sent to the state.
Yet several teachers tell SFR they were never shown the plan.
“The way a restructuring plan gets written really impacts curriculum and the whole structure of the school, but there really wasn’t room made to have those discussions,” Reid says. The Parent Teacher Student Association spent months asking to have input into the plan, she says, but wasn’t given much of an opportunity.
“There’s no reason that plan couldn’t have been gathering input since September,” Reid says. “That would be the way to approach it in the Monte del Sol spirit.”
When asked about the level of community input to the plan, Ritchie seemed surprised that people felt left out. She listed several meetings held in the spring to alert faculty, students and parents to the plan and, she says, collect input.
“We wanted to make it as transparent as possible,” Otero tells SFR. But, she admits, “There wasn’t a lot of attendance.”
Ritchie also gave SFR a 19-page synopsis of the plan, which draws from some No Child Left Behind recommendations, but also attempts to incorporate Monte del Sol’s creative, participatory culture.
The need for the plan became official on Aug. 2, when the New Mexico Public Education Department released the 2009-10 AYP results. Monte del Sol again failed to meet AYP and will have to implement its restructuring plan, when approved by the state.
Parts of the plan call for typically Monte-style programs: quarterly town halls on academic achievement in both Spanish and English, cooperation with higher learning institutions, and mental health and tutoring services.
But other aspects of the plan have engendered resistance because of the apparent push toward a more traditionally defined administration. These include adding a receptionist, making Otero’s position as dean of students a full-time job (Otero will no longer teach history, Ritchie says) and involving an outside consultant charged with “coaching teachers as they implement changes to instructional practices.”
There’s also a plan to wire the school with a PA/bell system—itself the very emblem of regimented schooling. And then there’s this: “Head Learner will make all decisions related to staffing, staff scheduling and site-based budget,” part of the restructuring plan reads.
“The principal makes a hiring decision; that’s state law,” Ritchie says. “It shouldn’t be a change.”
But to some, it represents a transition to a more traditional administration—and with it, the usual focus on achievement.
“The mission now isn’t about making wonderful leaders—it’s about getting good test scores,” Dean tells SFR. “A lot of the original mission is being sacrificed.”
Ritchie doesn’t deny her focus on bringing the school’s test scores up to par.
This year, Monte del Sol will implement its restructuring plan, which calls for a PA/bell system and other changes.
Credits: Photo: Alexa Schirtzinger
When she first came to Monte del Sol, Ritchie says she tried to avoid shaking things up—“but I think change was forced upon us,” she says.
Though she says she tried to incorporate all three aspects of healthy schools—academic, financial and relational—into her role as head learner, “I’m aware that doesn’t take place in one year,” Ritchie admits. “You can’t just step in and become the former leader who’s been here for 10 years.”
But Ritchie isn’t one to apologize.
“We’re moving from a very young school into a much more stable school, and that [takes] a different kind of leadership,” Ritchie says.
The question is, what kind?
In spite of the desperately positive spin the writer attempts to impart to the MDS experience, the fact is, it is little more than a day care drop-in center for teens. I noticed that "Head Learner" Gerlicz had his own child attend SF Prep. As would any parent, he wanted to see she received a quality education - and he knew MDS was never going to provide that. That's pretty telling all by itself, isn't it? It's typical of the fuzzy-headed thought process that all too many Santa Feans proudly embrace to ignore testing in education, and instead rely on "this really beautiful way of learning". Unfortunately, not much is actually learned, but we all feel real good about the fact we didn't learn anything. Of course, MDS students are enthusiatic about their "school", and why not? It requires essentially nothing of them. Feel like learning? Go ahead. Not so motivated? Go strum your guitar instead. When every class is recess, student approval is unsurprisingly sky-high! I wonder if they will be so enthusiastic about their MDS "education" when it's time to compete against actual students in college, or the real world workplace? Maybe a little more reading, and a little less interpretive dance would have been a good idea, huh? Oh well, too late now. But at least we didn't conform! Anyway, we can always live at St. E's, right?
It's good that we have Santa Fe Prep to educate The Realist's young Biffs and Muffys and put them on the inside track to Princeton. It's even better that we have Monte del Sol, ATC, Desert Academy, St. Mike's, the Waldorf High School, Tierra Encantada, Santa Fe High, Capitol, and all the other schools in town for the rest of our kids. MdS and ATC have long had high graduation rates and high numbers of kids going on to college- even, Realist, to name-brand colleges where they have done quite well. I don't know where your negativity comes from, but it can't be from interacting with the majority of kids from Monte del Sol.
I just wanted to clear up that Tony Gerlicz did not send his daughter to MDS because she did not want to go to school where he was principal. As a teacher, I've often seen students not wanting to attend where their parent is a principal. Several teachers had their children at MDS, but everyone had to join the lottery (including Tony's daughter if she had wanted to go). At my time there I saw several teachers in tears after their son or daughter did not make it into the lottery.
Just the facts. i'm not jumping in this argument.
Sorry, I didn't have a Muffy or a Biff to educate at SF Prep - Tony Gerlicz did. Does that make him a bad guy, in and of itself? If it matters, my kids attended MDS for one year, but I yanked them out and sent them to public school, as I found MDS to be a complete waste of time. The "negativity" in my initial comment comes from the article itself, which although overtly sympathetic to MDS, also clearly points out that it is failing the kids. It's interesting that you seem to feel I must never have interacted with any MDS kids. Actually, I've interacted with quite a few, aside from my own. By and large, there's nothing wrong with them, but they're being let down by the school, which is failing to educate them. I never suggested the kids were the problem, as they are not in charge of their own education. Tell any kid he has a choice between doing algebra or playing hacky sack, and which will he choose? That doesn't make him a bad kid, but he WILL suffer for it down the road. That's why it's up to educators provide an atmosphere of education, rather than playtime. At MDS, it's hard to tell who the adults are, and this is now painfully obvious in light of these abominable test scores. And rather than be outraged at the pathetic job this school is doing for our local youth, you're more offending by "negativity". If these test scores aren't cause for "negativity", what is?
In response to The Realist:
As a graduate of MDS, class of 2008, and a Junior attending The University of New Mexico, I can honestly say that I was completely prepared for all of my higher education courses at UNM. And seemingly much more prepared than the majority of college students in those courses. I believe this can be attributed to the years I spent at MDS (7th-12th grade). I can attest to the fact that the teaching methods compared to that of other schools is unique, however I can also attest that the teachers never once failed to take an interest in the students' learning. With many teachers recieving awards and nominations (Lisa Otero, Teri Wyrick) and others with credentials beyond that of most high school teachers, it cannot be said that "not much is actually learned". As for test scores, all of Santa Fe has low scores. As for graduation requirements, compare MDS to other public high schools and find out that Monte requires more from their students.
Tony Gerlicz is a brilliant man, who created an even more brilliant school, and surrounded it with charismatic, caring and compelling faculty. It is a shame that the school has come to be on a different path than he intended. However, I understand that budgetting is very difficult, and see no evidence to lead me to believe that Ritchie is not trying to make the most out of the money that the school is entitled to. I am still "enthusiastic" about my high school education, and have the higher ground in the "competition with other students in college". Do not make the mistake of false accusations, when a true testimony of someone who has gone through the experience has not been heard.
I hope MDS is able to thrive in the future, and provide the same educational experience it gave to me and my brother.