More Summer Shenanigans
“Up there the world is divided into bastards and suckers. Make your choice.”
― Derek Robinson, Piece of Cake
As I've probably mentioned more than once over the years, my son is a pretty solid ball player. He's 12 but successfully competes on the 13U level.
While I admire his athletic prowess, it's his mental skills that blow me away. He has one skill that I have yet to master.
He is capable of separating his personal feeling about a teammate, from his assessment of them as ball players. Sounds like a simple task, but it's really not. All too often, in less capable hands, the lines blur all too easily.
It is a skill I could use when assessing Nashville's Mayoral candidates, since I have at least a passing relationship with each of them, and genuinely like them as people. But that doesn't mean I think they all should be mayor.
That makes it difficult to be critical of their campaigns. Especially knowing how difficult running for office can be.
That said, here are my reflections about the race to this juncture.
Councilman Freddie O'Connell is running a fantastic campaign, at least on social media. Follow him on your preferred social media platform and his time out on the campaign trail just generates steam heat. But is Twitter real life?
The polls will tell.
Though he's obviously doing the work, I'm not sure his efforts are resonating outside of the Twitter-verse. I know signs don't vote, but over here in South Nashville, fellow candidate Alice Rolli likely has more than he does. He just made it onto TV and with early voting starting next week, I have yet to receive a mailer.
I can't help but think back to my ill-fated run for the school board. Based on social media, and anecdotal evidence, I thought I had it in the bag. I didn't. I got shellacked.
While embracing new technology is great, you still got to employ old-fashioned methods as well.
It'll be interesting to see how this all plays out at the polls.
Heidi Campbell on the other hand has embraced the theme of, "Nashville needs a mom."
Why? I've got a mom and I don't listen to her nearly as much as I should. What makes you assume that a surrogate mom would be any different?
It's also offensive on a couple levels.
First off, it makes the assumption that individuals have magical powers simply due to their sex. We do the same when it comes to race and gender identity. That's a fallacy.
Not all women are great mothers, any more than all men are great fathers. In fact, history has documented that some mothers are downright awful. So if we elect Heidi Campbell, what's the guarantee that we get June Cleaver and not "Mommy Dearest"? I know, I dated myself but you get the gist.
The second part is the implication that having a mom is somehow superior to having a dad. Everyone knows that Dads are always either the absent father or the "fun" parent, and this reinforces that implication. The hard work always falls to the mother, Dad's involvement is just peripheral.
I've dealt with that my whole tenure as a parent. People assume that because I'm the father, I'm either not as involved or just wrestle all day with the kids before taking them for ice cream. A school guidance counselor once told me that while she had concerns about my daughter falling through the cracks, she knew she wouldn't because she has a great mother. She does, but her Dad ain't no slouch either. That went unacknowledged.
That is just one instance, but hearing a mayoral candidate proposing the city needs a mother...doesn't resonate. At least with me. Nor does it feel particularly progressive or equitable. Once again it feels like the definition of equity is finding new people to marginalize, That's bullshit. Pardon my French.
In addition to the "mom" theme, Campbell is catching flack for apparently lifting the tagline, "Music City is out of tune" from fellow candidate Stephanie Johnson. Johnson is a young black woman, so it's really not a good look for Campbell.
In all fairness, 30 years ago when I first met the state senator she was a singer in a rock and roll band. Being a musician is an authentic part of who Campbell is. So maybe Johnson did use it first, but that doesn't mean it was stolen, or that Campbell even knew Johnson was using it. It's just as likely Campbell thought of it herself and was just slow to break it out.
Alice Rolli, for her part, seems to be running a solid campaign. I wish she listened a little less to David Fox, a former candidate who heavily supported mayoral control for the schools. He's her campaign manager, so I guess that's to be expected. Rolli is interesting because despite her being the conservative candidate in a progressive city, they can't seem to knock her out of race. it's not for a lack of trying.
State Senator Jeff Yarbro and Matt Wiltshire are busy being themselves. Charismatic alpha males, quietly going about their campaign business. Neither has the social media presence of either Rolli, Campbell, or O'Connell and maybe that's a good thing. In a month we'll have a better indication.
Hurt and Whillhoite are running good campaigns, but I'm not sure there is enough to differentiate them from other candidates, other than them being Black women. But there are at least 3 other candidates that share that distinction. Whilhoite has apparently left a long line of disgruntled Nashvillians in her wake, and I continue to hear stories of her sins, some imagined, some very real.
Here's my runoff prediction for the runoff at this juncture.
I think it's Wiltshire and Yarboro neck and neck, with Rolli sneaking in. Despite all the growth, the city is still partial to its own. That's why I don't really pay any attention to Jim Gingrich.
O'Connell likely kills it inside the 440 loop, but like the transit vote, loses on the outer perimeter.
That's where I live today. Maybe that'll change next week.
I still think the candidate who starts talking power outages over stadium votes pics up momentum.
To quote Heidi Campbell, ""What you want to see in a mayor is somebody who is able to move forward with Nashville benefiting the most from the plans that are being made from here on out, not to make an entire campaign about complaining about something that has already been done."
Amen Heidi, amen.
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It's official. Tennessee now has a new Commissioner of Education. This week Lizzette Reynolds was sworn in by Governor Lee. It was a small affair, consisting primarily of friends, family, and Lee.
“I am excited and humbled by having the opportunity to serve Tennessee’s families to ensure they get the best possible education for their children,” said Commissioner Reynolds. “I look forward to meeting with educators, families, elected officials, and stakeholders throughout the state and continuing the great work already happening on behalf of kids in Tennessee.”
Reynolds may be excited to meet with Tennesseans, but she is certainly not in any hurry.
She was appointed by Lee way back on May 1st but has had little communication with educators, families, elected officials, and stakeholders since. At the end of week one, there is still no indication of what her priorities will be.
An accompanying press release says, "Reynolds’ career reflects a deep commitment to high-quality education for all students, including work in school choice, assessment and accountability, college and career pathways, and education policy."
That career does not include any time in Tennessee, nor in K-12 classrooms.
Reynolds previously served as the Vice President of Policy for ExcelinEd. She has also served as Deputy Legislative Director for then-Governor George W. Bush, Special Assistant in the Office of Legislation and Congressional Affairs for U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige, Regional Representative for U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings, and Chief Deputy Commissioner at the Texas Education Agency.
What I do see is a history of working with the Federal Government. Ironically, Tennessee's legislators have openly talked of rejecting federal money.
Really wish someone would clue me into what exactly on her resume is a reflection on Tennessee Education policy?
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Tennessee has entered into a 5-year $3.65 million contract with a private entity, Student First Technologies (SFT), to manage the state's fledgling ESA program. According to the company's co-founder Mark Duran, "The software company’s role will be to “empower the TDOE with their platform’s tools in order to effectively run the state’s ESA program.” TDOE will remain the direct administrator of the savings account program, using the technology platforms provided by SFT for assistance.
According to Duran, staffing responsibilities will remain with the TDOE, the company will focus on training and technology in an effort to make the program more effective.
This is SFT's first foray into partnering with a state agency. In the past, they've focused on primarily assisting private non-profits in administering tax-credit scholarships and micro-grants. The Indiana-based company currently operates in 15 different states.
The company was the runner-up to another company in the recently completed competitive bid process. They were awarded the contract after negotiations fell through with the other entity.
There are questions as to whether the young small company is capable of handling a task of this magnitude.
After talking with Duran on the phone, I give them points for engagement. He was open and more than willing to talk.
Stay golden Pony Boy.
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The start of school is just a few weeks away. MNPS still has openings. So, let's have a job fair. Cause that always works.
Metro Nashville Public Schools is kicking off the start of a new school year with a summer Recruitment Fair on Friday, July 14, where the district will be making immediate hires and recommendations for hire for all positions, including:
Licensed teachers for all content areas and grades
Permit-eligible teachers
Librarians and board-certified behavior analysts
School counselors, psychologists and social workers
Speech-language pathologists
School Safety Ambassadors
Support positions, including transportation, nutrition services, maintenance and security
$2,500 stipend-eligible teaching positions with Schools of Innovation (Exceptional education, Math and Science)
They will also be hiring for the newly created position of Classroom Associate.
This position's primary duty is to serve as a substitute teacher when there are unfilled vacancies. When there are no vacancies, the team member performs other duties as assigned (supervision, office work, clerical, etc.). Some more things to know:
200-day position
Applicant must have at least 60 hours of college credit
1-3 years of work experience required
No background in education is necessary
Attractive benefits package and competitive wage*
You can read the full job description and apply for the position here.
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I'll leave you with this one to discuss among yourselves. A recent study looked at whether parents are accurate in their reading concerns, with implications for pediatric practice.I haven't read the whole thing, but according to the abstract:
"Approximately 22% of parents endorsed concern, while 18.5% of children had word reading difficulty. Parental concern status accurately corresponded with reading difficulty status in 81% of cases (95% CI: 76% to 85%). Specificity was 85% (95% CI: 80% to 90%), while sensitivity was 59% (95% CI: 44% to 73%). Children of unconcerned parents rarely had word reading problems (NPV 91%; 95% CI: 88% to 94%), while children with concerned parents had word reading difficulty in 45% of cases (PPV; 95% CI: 36% to 54%). Apparent inaccuracy (i.e., mismatch between parental concern and reading difficulty status) was related to children’s word reading, oral sentence recall skills, and English language learner (ELL) status, but not child age, sex, or parent education."
In other words, "Parental concern is an overall accurate screener for word reading difficulty, although some children will be missed."
Who knew?
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