For one, I’m totally ecstatic that Opdahl has resigned. But then I see things like this in today’s Advocate:
Opdahl said he planned to leave before the end of the school year, and he wants to work out a deal in which he can help take care of any loose ends.
Oh yeah, here’s a loose end that I’d like to see taken care of. A forensic audit of the construction projects and a forensic audit of operating budgets and any contracts signed by Opdahl. Since Opdahl wsa notorious for not documenting routine things, like travel expenses, I’d just like a line item list of all reas where a lack of documentation exists. Let’s start with the kitchen equipment that sits unused. Who authroized the pruchase, when was it paid out, and what equipment does the school district actaully have.
Same goes for the “new curriculum” departments brought in as replacement for woodworking. What happened to the equipment, what was purchased and where is it etc.
Lastly I’d like to see what “professional” associations have been “purchased” on behalf of Opdahl.
That’s a start to the loose ends. But maybe more importantly, effective immediately, Opdahl shouldn’t sign off on any contracts or purchases.
Gee Turf, what should Opdahl receive as his going away present??
Many places give a gold watch as a parting gift, but that would be so cliche…I know, how about a gold plated wood lathe!!?? Ohh, that’s right..He’s ALREADY got one (or several).
Any other Ideas? Anyone? Anyone?
What I find incredibly ironic is that he is leaving Norwalk schools to become the FINANCE DIRECTOR at Oxford, CT schools – a town with a population of 12,309….
Glad that a town of 12,309 people have figured out the value of a finance director in their school district – and our BOE promises to “study” the issue.
“he wants to work out a deal in which he can help take care of any loose ends”
Does this mean that he wants to continue being paid as a consultant to Norwalk, while working fulltime as finance director for Oxford?
Sal, say it isn’t so.
The more I think about this, the more disturbed I become. Every position eventually becomes vacant, and so the BOE needs to deal with this head on, not to prolong the situation. The BOE needs to focus on filling Mr. Opdahl’s vacancy or bringing in an interim replacement; it does not need to bring him back on a consulting basis to “tie up loose ends.” This district needs the undivided attention of a chief operating officer or finance director, whichever position the BOE decides to fill.
#4 I am with you on this one. I hope the BOE does right by the people and looks to other people than the friends of Corda to fill these positions. I also hope that the committees formed to interview are not just going through the motions as they did for past principal/and housemaster hires.
The fear is that Sal will try to take care of one of his friends by letting Opdahl stay on to get more of Norwalk’s $$$$$ They may present this “deal” as a way to help with the transition because others are also leaving, but I say that the BOE needs to make a clean break because there has been so much criticism of Opdahl. (If there is a controversial principal who is disliked by many people, do we hire him/her to come back after retirement?)
I don’t know that much about the principal and housemaster hires, except that I know he hired an old associate as a consultant to find principal candidates. The people I talked to were unhappy with the guy’s work.
You know this is a really great time for the new BOE to take a stand and show that they are united in working to get the best people for the emptied spots at central office. I hope they reject keeping the dead weight away from consulting the new administrators, they may pollute the new hires by showing them their way of doing business. I would like to see the BOE work together and work quickly to find the right fit.
Good job on Opdahl Turfgirl. I’m impressed with some of the goodies you were able to dig up about the bum. Believe me when I say that there will be more crap hitting the fan as the next few days and weeks go by and Opdahl will no longer be in a position to cover things up anymore or have the power and influence over the staff members that were previously forced to keep quiet for fear of losing their jobs. His legacy will live on for years to come. His six years of total reckless spending, dereliction of duty, improper and inappropriate practices, continued failure to follow policy & procedure, favoritisum, double standards, and poor behavior will finally rear its ugly head for all of you to see. I hope that you are prepared for what you will be seeing and realizing how bad thinks really are with what Opdahl has caused and created. Thank you Stuart! Thank you Salvatore! And thank you Mr & Mrs BOE members! You have all let us down. You are all shameful.
#8: If the weak-kneed BOE allows Stu to make his deal to tie up loose ends after his official departure from Norwalk, nothing much will change, and the superintendent will be in no hurry to hire a new chief operating officer or finance director.
What amazes me is that Sal Corda has a strong intellect, but I just don’t understand his judgment of people. He thinks Karen Lang is great, but I know of no one who respects her at all, and I have heard that that extends to at least some BOE members. He thinks that Stu is the best, but anyone within the district cringes when discussing Stu’s ways of handling district operations and school construction. There are others whom Sal likes, despite glaring issues that he should see and address.
The BOE should be able to trust the judgment of the superintendent it employs.
Please read the entire post before you comment.
I’d like to see the entire Department Of Education declared invalid and scrapped.
Folks, let’s get the whole bunch declared a hazard to our children and throw them *all* out! And by all I mean everyone, administrators, teachers, staff, even the cleaning crew and lunch people!
We can start over fresh! Sure we can hire some of them back, but not without a massive interview campaign first.
Too many on the trenches are burnt-out. This would be an effective way to force the issue… you know shake out the dead wood that’s only hanging on by sheer force of habit.
There are some teachers that still have the traits we want/need. But the bulk are just ‘municipal employees’ whose only desire is to have their summers off.
I’m truly sick of it! I think that there are enough of us that feel the same way. If you are disgusted, please speak up. Let’s see how deep the (I want to say corruption) ‘problem’ runs.
ctyankee I am all for cleansing the system of the apathetic and disengaged, however to dismiss all would send the signal that even the energetic and conective teachers were disposable. That would have many of our best and brightest leave to other systems. This happens in other towns where they do this pink slip for all motion. I say we have pay for excellence. Join Joanne and the NNHT on Saturday the 5th to clean Flax Hill Park. I have been encouraging my students to reah out to their community by joiing as well.
Lets hope Corda follows suit and goes next. Lets hire someone who lives in Norwalk and has a interest in Norwalk. Tired of everything in Norwalk being ruiened by out of towners and it being ok with our local gov.
#12: I disagree about necessarily hiring someone who lives in Norwalk because that would narrow the search to perhaps only a couple of people, since there are different certification requirements for a superintendent. Norwalk cannot limit itself to those who meet such narrow criteria if we are hope to get an effective superintendent.
However, moving into Norwalk, or at least into the vicinity, is a good idea, especially because many of us strongly believe that the current superintendent has still not learned much about his own school system, i.e., the people in it. He has had loyalty and talent directly beneath his nose, but he never picked up the scent. Truly good administrators and teachers have gone unnoticed, and these are people who could have given the superintendent so much better an understanding of the school system.
Instead, he has consistently latched onto sycophants and/or old buddies and/or ivory tower intellectuals who know nothing about Norwalk. Talk off the record to almost anyone who works or who has worked on the 3rd floor of City Hall, and you will see the disappointment and disillusionment on their faces. The BOE either has no idea how bad things are, or they are not courageous enough to do something about the situation.
13 you are right thats what I meant they would have to live in Norwalk not be from Norwalk. I think all city department heads and police should have to live in Norwalk it would make a big difference. Imagine if Corda’s kids went to Norwalk schools and his property value depended on good schools.
How many secondary teachers moved to the front of the auditorium today when asked to by Corda? 3 untenured teachers moved. you just had to be there to see the humor in it.
Aunt Bertha: And the surprising part of that is? I’ll finish the sentence for you. The surprising part of that is that he still doesn’t see that he has no credibility with the teachers. Humorous? In a way it is, but it’s far more pathetic than it is humorous.
You are right #16, it was pathetic. The speaker could feel the tension that his request brought out in the crowd and then made us all laugh when he said; Hey when I was a kid I sat in the back with the cool bunch so we could see what everyone in front of us was doing. He was right on target.
“made us all laugh when he said; Hey when I was a kid I sat in the back with the cool bunch so we could see what everyone in front of us was doing. He was right on target”
This was his effort to seem like “one of the guys,” but cute jokes don’t establish relationships. It takes ongoing communication with people at all levels, even those down in the trenches. Such communication doesn’t exist because the superintendent has never been interested enough to do the work necessary to make it happen, and he has been in the schools so infrequently. He needs to visit the “homes” of the teachers and administrators; that is, he needs to visit the schools — when school is in session. He needs to do more than talk about his awareness of the hard work that teachers do; he needs to observe that work on a regular basis by walking the halls and sitting in on classes. I’m not talking about a quick public relations scam; I mean something that is ongoing.
Dr. Ron Fergerson said this when he started to speak to the teachers…not Corda. He was trying to ease the tension.
How about when Corda said, “I’ll give you 30 seconds.” Even “pathetic” does not do it justice. I think the stories about Dr. Moore need to be heard here daily. I think the public needs to hear these stories. Please post them…
What about a critique of the lecture? We saw a lot of charts. Heard a lot of comparisons between whites, blacks, asians, hispanics and others. We were told over and over and over that the gap between the races came to a leveling out in about the 1988′s and that is when the good Doctor was starting his research into bridging the gap between white learners and minority groups. I got all this from sitting in the back. Okay, so then let those of us who were around in the late 1980′s talk about what was going on then. Why were there increases in the 70′s and early 80′s in minority learning? Was imagration lower? Where both parents in the house or at least one of the parents in the house spoke english? How about inclusion or mainstreaming as the old school ones will remember it as how much of it was done before 1988? Are we sacrificing our top learners for the sake of answering law suits? How about the fact that the USA has dropped in world standing in Math since this time? And the high learners even though they may be white have dropped and leveled out with other groups? Is this openning a can of worms? Are our administrators leading with encouragement or are they demanding things be done? It is proven by the evidence that those who are taught by encouragement do far better, shouldn’t that same theory be used by the administrators? If Corda encouraged us to move to the front instead of demanded would there have been more people helping him out? Practice what you want us to preach. I was just thinking out loud. Have a wonderful weekend.
#11 As I’ve followed the threads, it is apparent that the problems are deep, and based in the status-quo. The *only* way to disrupt such firmly established patterns is to smash the matrix in which they are embedded.
Can anyone here honestly say that the job vacuum created bu the complete dismissal would make it difficult to re-hire the few good folks back into the *new* school system?
As we all know >40% of the workforce would be easy to eliminate. The 60% are carrying the weight right now as it is.
Any HR department worth its salt could weed out the dead-wood in three weeks if it was given carte-blanch to the right thing. Hence the problem. No one down town has the guts to do what is right, only what is easy and expedient.
The 40% cut in headcount coming from the upper salary spectrum of overpaid, under worked, utterly useless talking heads, would accomplish several goals.
1) It would re-invigorate the demoralized teachers, by recognizing the value of their contribution.
2) I would send a clear message to the students, that accountability for your actions/inactions is a fact in the real world.
Kids, parents, and families have to *want* education, not have it thrust upon them. As I see it the city runs an unproductive, unaccountable, and expensive day-care and babysitting service.
Ctyankee I do see your thoughts. I agree that those who are not doing their job should go. If only schools were run like business they would learn to document the problems and get rid of them. Some of your idea is sound.
A good reply by Aunt Bertha to some valid ideas by Ctyankee. The problems are indeed deep having filtered down over the last seven years under Corda’s lack of leadership and missmanagement of a once proud and functional public school system. Being a born & raised Norwalker and working at the BOE myself for over 25 years, I can honestly tell you that I have never (and I mean never) seen things as bad as they are today. If a poll of the 8 or so bargaining units representing the Norwalk Public School systems 1,000 plus employees were taken tomorrow, I would bet my last dollar that 90% would have a vote of NO CONFIDENCE in Corda.
Townie- you are right. just don’t lay down any of your dollars on Corda, he should be giving back some of his dollars to the system.
If only the system could bring back some of the people who have left. Corda would never allow it because he wants his own people.
This may be a little late, but why would Corda bring back people who left? He was afraid of them – that’s why he got rid of them. He’s an insecure , “tiny” boy.
#27: Sal needs “yes” men and women around him — sycophants. Norwalk has suffered because of his poor ability to judge character and talent, as well as his failure to understand the importance of communication (where have we heard that before?) and the necessity of considering the views of others as being valuable.
Sal, egocentrism is a serious flaw.
Ctyankee:
Would you like to teach in Norwalk? Do you know what it’s like to be a teacher in Norwalk? Before you make comments about getting rid of them all, think before you write them down in a blog site like this one. It’s easy to say, but there are more teachers who are truly dedicated at what they do than those who are burned out. There are more issues today to deal with than there were 25 years ago. Children are having children, there’s more access to any type of drug they want (prescription, especially) and the teachers are really trying their best. There has to be legitimate support from the administrators for the educators, or the system will fail. Sal will fall here in Norwalk because one by one, he’s being seen for what he really is – not a fit match for Norwalk.