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Plan for Robles, Oak Park rattles their teachers
By MELANIE AVE, Times Staff Writer TAMPA -- About a dozen teachers showed up at Tuesday night's School Board meeting, upset about a plan to transform their D-rated elementary schools into specialized academies this fall that would require them to reapply for their jobs. "We feel like we're being labeled as ineffective teachers," said Robles Elementary teacher Nancy Williams, 40. "We're not ineffective teachers." Last week, superintendent Earl Lennard announced a plan to jump-start Hillsborough's voluntary desegregation plan this fall at Oak Park and Robles elementary schools by having the two schools adopt specialized curricula similar to magnet schools. Oak Park on E 10th Avenue would focus on math, science and technology while Robles on E Sligh Avenue would emphasize reading, writing and math. The school day at both schools would be 45 minutes longer than at other elementaries, and the school year would be 210 days instead of 184 if lawmakers approve funding. All teachers and administrators would reapply for their jobs and agree to one additional week of paid training this summer. Some Robles teachers said they are upset both about the changes and the way they learned about them in the newspaper. Lennard said he was sorry for the way they were informed. "I can only apologize," he said. "They have a right to be upset." Robles teacher Michelle D'Intino, who doesn't plan to reapply for her job, said changes are necessary at the school to improve student performance. But true change will only come if the district addresses parenting, mobility and socioeconomic issues. "The problem is not the teachers," she said. Community meetings will be held before changes are made, and the School Board must approve the plans.
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From the Times Ernest Hooper |
