Battle teacher claims district failed to meet obligations to school
Battle High School teacher Susie Adams struck a nerve with some in Columbia Public Schools administration when, at the March 14 school board meeting, she announced she would not vote for the April 5 school bond issue because the district has failed to meet its obligations to the school.
“It’s time for the central administration and the board to make good on their broken promises before moving on,” Adams said.
She spoke of “glaring inequities” at Battle and other schools on the north side of town.
Adams said the school was promised additional resources when boundary changes resulted in the number of students qualifying for free or reduced-price meals moved above 50%. The rate is an indicator of poverty.
She said at the board meeting she was disappointed that she had to take action to call attention to the issue.
“This issue is seemingly ignored year after year,” Adams said.
Response from the district was swift.
“It is disheartening when the good work and commitment to addressing supports for students as promised is not articulated in a public setting,” CPS spokeswoman Michelle Baumstark wrote in a March 16 email to the Tribune. “We also understand that educators face challenges every day and that they too need supports and wrap-around services. We’re not perfect, but everything we do, every decision made, is done with our students ‘best interest at heart. We’ re committed to continuous improvement. “
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On March 15, school board candidates at a forum all agreed the issues Adams brought forward were real and deserved attention. Current board member Blake Willoughby said the board is trying to use the budgeting process when allocating resources to specific schools.
Candidate Adam Burks said there’s a communication problem when a teacher has to make a statement at a school board meeting to get attention to an issue.
Columbia Public Schools responds with ‘clarification,’ resources
Adams, a teacher in CPS for 29 years including nine at Battle, teaches world history and advanced placement American history.
She said district administration offered her what she termed “clarification” about her comments.
“Over at Battle, we’ve been fairly vocal” about our needs, Adams said.
One need has been for an administrator to provide behavior support for the school’s students with special needs, she said.
CPS has provided this in the days since Adams’ remarks to the school board. The district is using federal funds for a “behavior interventionist” at Battle.
“This is a much-needed gain for the entire Battle community,” Adams said, noting the administrator will provide more support and continuity in the special education classrooms at Battle.
It was Battle teachers’ biggest need, said Katie Cox, language arts teacher and department chair.
“We were promised another crisis counselor, which is something our students could really use,” Cox said.
Two Battle students have died from gun violence in incidents away from school, Adams said.
“I personally have dealt with a handful of students,” Adams said. “I was providing some guidance to them.”
She has a master’s degree in counseling, but most teachers do not have that educational background, she said.
Both Adams and Cox said they appreciate the school’s agreement with Burrell Behavioral Health to provide services to students, but it does not replace a district employee who is immediately available to students.
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Adams said she was unaware until a Wednesday parent-teacher association meeting at Battle that the school had two trauma-informed counselors, and had to ask to determine who the second counselor was. The second counselor serves only the students in special education, Adams said.
“We need a counselor who is embedded in the Battle community,” Adams said. “It is my understanding that Burrell will see students, but at a financial cost. While I am grateful for the opportunity to have more student needs addressed, it doesn ‘t fully address the issue. “
At the Wednesday meeting, it was mentioned that there is financial assistance available for students without insurance for the Burrell services.
The school district provided information that Battle has 400 fewer students than Rock Bridge and Hickman High Schools.
“I do not know that our class sizes are so much better,” Adams said, adding that most classes are around 24 to 27 students.
‘At Battle, the passion is here’
Superintendent Brian Yearwood addressed these issues at the Wednesday meeting and in a private interview following the meeting.
“I know at Battle, the passion is here,” Yearwood said. “I love to hear from you how can we get better?”
He said he has looked at the complaints.
“Are there inequities?” Yearwood asked. “The research came out very clearly, no.”
Adams did not agree with the statement when asked the next day.
“I very clearly see inequities in many areas,” Adams said.
They include the high numbers for students receiving free and reduced-price meals.
“Many more of our students have deficits in reading and math than at the other two high schools,” Adams said. “Battle students have experienced trauma due to gun violence. The lack of city bus routes directly to our building inhibits students from accessing afterschool activities including tutoring. “
The staff at Battle has tried to implement creative solutions to address the inequities, Adams said.
A math interventionist is expected to be provided in 2022-23 using federal funds, according to district information.
Other help promoted by the school district includes a new school bus route and $ 653,000 in additional staff in the last three years, including home-school communicators, specialists and teachers.
There’s literacy support available, according to district information.
Weekday dinners for students involved in after-school activities have resumed four days a week.
“It does not really feel like it’s helping us,” said a teacher who did not identify herself by name, to Yearwood.
“Any effective change does take three to five years,” he said.
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School Resource Officers Chris Williams and Cory Dawkins were formally introduced at the meeting. Dawkins said he has already heard an idea from a student for a march against gun violence.
Both said they want to mentor the students, not arrest them.
Teachers did not ask for the school resource officers, Cox said in a phone interview.
Battle students working on tiny house project
Battle students also have a Geometry in Construction course not available to students at other high schools, Baumstark said.
The 25 students in the class are using math skills, tools and their hands to build a 320-square-foot tiny house.
Students on Friday were doing electrical work, said geometry teacher Brian Hancock. Windows and doors will be installed after spring break, followed by siding and roofing.
“The kids did all the wiring in the house,” Hancock said.
“This is the third house produced in the class,” Hancock said. There was no house in 2020-21 when the school year started online.
On alternate days, or days when the weather does not allow outside work, the students are in the classroom doing geometry and trigonometry related to the project, the teacher said.
On some of the boards in the house, one could previously see the trigonometry problems written on the boards which students used to determine the angle of the miter saw.
Sophomores Terrell Johnson and Wiley French and junior Cedric Miller are in the class. All are 16.
“It’s all fun,” Cedric said. “It’s teaching me a lot about construction and how math applies to real-world situations. It’s a pretty fun class.”
Terrell said he’s from St. Louis where there were no classes like this one.
“I learn better when it’s hands-on,” he said.
The class is more fun than being in a classroom all the time, Wiley said.Organization and cooperation is required.
“We’re having to work with each other and talk to each other,” Wiley said.
The house will be auctioned when it’s completed, Hancock said.
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‘A hard struggle’
Adams said she felt her statement at the school board meeting needed to be made. Though she will not vote in favor of the bond issue, she encourages everyone else to vote in favor of it.
“That was a hard struggle for me,” Adams said of the decision.
Battle High School does see benefits, including classes like Geometry in Construction, Adams said.
“We have kids from the country, city kids, kids with special needs,” Adams said. “It makes our school really cool.”
Asked if he was concerned Adams ‘statement could hurt the chances of passage for the bond issue, Yearwood said no, because Adams’ statement had been corrected.
Told that Adams wanted others to vote in favor of the bond issue, Yearwood said it was important that information be reported.
Real improvements will not come without a greater investment in resources, said Cox, the Battle language arts teacher.
“I do not see any major changes unless we have the staff and resources to meet our high-need population,” Cox said.
Roger McKinney is the education reporter for the Tribune. You can reach him at [email protected] or 573-815-1719. He’s on Twitter at @ rmckinney9.