The F Word

Wow. Check out this article from the LA Times (below).

Forty-eight percent of students are suspended for things like not taking off their hat!  I understand there are rules - and there should be, but minor disobedient actions like this is what detention and community service is all about.  Do not kick the student completely out of school, denying them a full day of learning, for something as small as not wearing their uniform for the day.  

Discipline them constructively, where they are still learning, and will not fall behind in class.  On the other hand, if they just act out and disrupt the learning environment, yes, they should be suspended until they understand respect and their role in the school community.

Everyone.  We must all pay attention, and do our part to improve the education system.  Stop ignoring.  Even if you do not have kids yet, your kids will be in these school systems eventually.  Pay attention.  Speak up. Get involved.  Help our children, our future.

LA Times

 L.A. schools will no longer suspend a student for being defiant

Los Angeles Unified has become the first school district in the state to ban defiance as grounds for suspension.

 By Teresa Watanabe

May 15, 2013, 8:45 a.m.

 In a 5-2 vote that was met with cheers, the school board banned suspensions for defiant students, directing officials to use alternative disciplinary practices instead.

 The action comes amid mounting national concern that removing students from school is imperiling their academic achievement and disproportionately harming minority students, particularly African Americans.

 “Now we’ll have a better chance to stay in school and become something,” said Luis Quintero, 14, a student at Augustus Hawkins High School in South Los Angeles. He attended the board meeting along with dozens of other students and community activists who have been pushing the proposal by board members Monica Garcia and Nury Martinez.

 But the vote came after an impassioned discussion over whether the proposal would give a “free pass” to students and shield them from the consequences of misbehavior. Board member Marguerite LaMotte, who voted no, told students that they needed to pay for their mistakes, while member Richard Vladovic said no student had the right to disrupt learning opportunities for classmates.

“I’m not going to give you permission to go crazy and think there are no consequences,” LaMotte said.

 Board member Tamar Galatzan voted no without comment, while Vladovic supported it as an experiment, saying he would be “the first to stop it” if it proved disruptive to learning. Garcia, Martinez, Steve Zimmer and Bennett Kayser supported the proposal.

 The action marks a decisive step back from “zero tolerance” policies that swept the nation after the Columbine school shooting in Colorado more than a decade ago.

 The proposal would ban suspensions of students for “willful defiance,” an offense criticized as a subjective catch-all for such behavior as refusing to take off a hat, turn off a cellphone or failing to wear a school uniform. The offense accounted for 48% of 710,000 suspensions issued in California in 2011-12, prompting state and local efforts to restrict its use in disciplinary actions.

 School officials will instead focus on positive behavior incentives, which have reduced office discipline referrals by up to 50% in 13,000 schools using them nationwide, according to Fix School Discipline, an initiative of the Public Counsel Law Center of Los Angeles.

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-lausd-suspensions-20130515,0,442761.story?track=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+lanowblog+%28L.A.+Now%29

One of my childhood favorite meals was hot dogs and beans. I was talking about it the other day, and the craving got the best of me. Last night for dinner, I had franks and beans - and it was delicious!

Nom nom!

My roommate’s girlfriend is a doll.  She wanted to surprise all of us and brought us frozen yogurt from her shop.  Even after we told her we don’t like frozen yogurt.  Very, sweet?

I wanted real ice cream.  Cream!  Not yogurt.  Can’t stress that enough.

She personally chose each ingredient for each of our treats.  For mine, she told me it was lactose free yogurt with almonds and a chocolate covered gummy butterfly.

Although I didn’t want it, I was not going to let it go to waste.  She made it for me.  So I decided to give it another try.  Maybe it could be a tasty treat.

I pushed the chocolate covered gummy butterfly aside, because I’m not a fruity, chewy candy person.  I made a decent scoop, and gagged.  The first bite was full of peanut butter.  I looked down, and the entire top was peanut butter.  I don’t like peanut butter.  Gross!

I tried to shake off the forming attitude.  It was a sweet gesture.  But I didnt ask for it, and if you are going to get someone something, know what they like.  Peanut butter?  You must hate me!

So I decided to scoop past all of that, because it was a large size, and seemed to only have that grossness on top.  My spoon hits the bottom of the bowl, and clanks.  It’s frozen, but like ice frozen.  WTF?!

I dig deeper, and uncovered kiwi, raspberries, and blueberries.  Guess what?  I don’t like raspberries and blueberries either!  And why would anyone want raspberries, blueberries, peanut butter, and chocolate mixed together with a gummy butterfly on top?  I had so much attitude at this point.

When I saw her, I thanked her again for the sweet sentiment.  And yes, I let her know how disgusting it was, and asked her to NEVER bring me frozen yogurt again.  She said she was hoping to change my mind about it, and blamed my roommate for not telling her what I like when she asked.

Call me a brat.  That’s fine.  I would rather be honest with her, and avoid it happening again.  I am still very thankful she thought of me and tried.  Oooh she tried it! :P

My office is in downtown Los Angeles, which in the last few years has developed into a happening place to be.  Sort of.  Certain streets really.

Everyone has heard of skid row, and man is it real.  As many homeless people you find on the beach, there are even more downtown.  Most of the shelters are downtown, but it really is the central hub for the homeless population.

Although there are a few blocks that make up skid row, you will come across many wanderers throughout the entire downtown area.  I walk past several daily, to the point that we are on speaking terms and check in on each other.  Well, I do this with the few that actually speak.  One just grunts at me, but I know he means good morning in return.

Anywho, there is a frail old lady in a wheelchair that calls me “Lunchbox.”  Yes, it is because of my lunchbox collection that I carry daily.  When she sees me coming, she will meet me halfway, and tag a long for about a block to catch up on life.  She always has a thick blanket in her lap.  Underneath that blanket is a warm and sleeping-like-a-prince black Schnauzer mix pup.  Cutie!

One morning she seems down, and I notice her face is bruised.  I asked her what was going on, and she told me she was in a fight.  Who are you fighting in a wheelchair!

A homeless man tried to steal her belongings, and when she tried to stop him, he punched her several times.  My eyes watered listening to her story.  It’s bad enough she is living on the streets, but now a man is beating on her?  This is too much!

As I began to fire questions at her about this man, like I could really do something to him, she tells me not to worry about it.  She said she bit the sugar-honey-iced-tea out of him and he ran off bloody.  At some point in describing her, I probably should have pointed out that she has all of FOUR teeth!  And she bit him!

My anger quickly turned into laughter.  She thanked me for caring, and said she will never let anyone take her stuff.  I asked her to just take care of herself.  And her little dog too!