Class of '61: 50th Class Reunion

Kathy, Bonnie, Pam, & Carol '61

This weekend was our 50th class reunion for the first graduating class of Eastridge High School. Yes, it was for the weekend; Friday and Saturday. Just remember the class of '61 does it for the whole weekend, not just one night.

It was a blast seeing my old high school chums. A few reminded me of all the nonsensical things we did when we were teens, most of which I was originally happy to forget; like the time I blew a whole in the ceiling during chemistry class, in our brand new school, because I mixed the wrong chemicals together. The hallways smelled like rotten eggs for months.

The most notable memory was the Section V Basketball Championship Eastridge won in 1961. There was one minute left in the game and Eastridge was one point behind. We all figured we had lost the game by one stinkin' point. Then out of nowhere, with five seconds remaining in the game and nothing to lose, Kenny Oberg lobbed a long ball from the opposite end of the court that went SWISH; the magical sound that signaled our big win. It was one of those spectacular moments we'll never forget.

Our class was unusual because we had no upper class men/women to follow. Why? Because construction was started on the new high school in 1958. There were only enough classrooms to accommodate a freshman class the first year. Additional classrooms were added each year to make room for the students coming in behind us. That's how our class became upper class men/women and subsequently the first graduating class. I guess you could say we were always seniors. As a result of  this, we were a tight knit class with 270 plus graduating in 1961.

Now the 18 year old senior class of  '61 has turned into 68 year old seniors from the school of hard knocks. The best part of all is we don't act like 68 year old seniors. Most of us don't even look like senior citizens. The rest of us don't give a horse pucky. That's what's nice about getting old; it's a great equailzer.

This is one of those events when we all became weekend teenagers and nobody cared. There were no curfews and no nagging parents. Collectively we turned the clock back and became 18 again, revisiting another era. Remember the Nixon-Kennedy debates and the song Blue Moon? If not, that's okay. Now you can Google the debates or listen to Blue Moon while reading this blog post.

It felt good to get back to my own roots. Roots I have somehow neglected to water and nourish regularly over the years. Moving, marriage, children, grandchildren, divorce, remarriage, death of loved ones, and busy schedules have all compromsied my root system. So, yeah, it was good to go back. It's been 50 years since I've seen most of my old high school friends, but we picked up right where we left off; with a strong support system I know is still there.

I love you, class of '61. Thanks for a fun weekend full of great memories. My roots are now nourished.

Change the Paradigm

It's no great news that our education system is older than dirt. It's time we change the paradigm. We need a model of education that taps into a child's true interests. We need to encourage them to pursue those interests rather than march them through a system that teaches them to regurgitate correct answers to  questions on a standardized test that no one gives a hoot about anyway. It's educational horse pucky.

Let's challenge these students to address the current environment in which they live so they can do something about it. Instead of thinking linearly, we need to encourage them to come up with more than one answer to questions asked. There is always more than one way to do a job, solve a problem, develop an idea, and create a plan. Get going by changing the paradigm. Give children the opportunity to grow into the brilliant stars they are meant to be.

Horse Pucky Award #6

The Horse Pucky Award of the week goes to the New York State Department of Education.

Rochester school districts are complaining about being shorted $36 million dollars. How about doing away with the rubber room, which costs in excess of $35 million a year to operate. What's the rubber room? Read April 13th post "The Rubber Room".

Or how about returning tax payer dollars for supporting an over surplus of school supplies that have been sitting around in boxes for years, which cost us $11 million total. The reason: No one bothered to check what was actually needed, so purchasing was done by someone who said, "If we need two we probably need twenty, so I think I'll order twenty." Lazy, lazy, lazy.

What amazes me is how people, who are in responsible positions, get jobs in the first place and keep them?

It's more horse pucky as usual.

The Rubber Room

New York State politicians are always trying to figure out ways to cut costs. How about doing away with the rubber room with annual costs in excess of $35 million.

What is the rubber room? It's a detaining center for teachers who are accused of misconduct. Some of the misconduct may be ficticious or true. The point is, the rubber room holds these teachers until a court date is set for a hearing and adjudication. It can take years for a court date to be set. Meanwhile, each teacher held in detention, receives full pay and benefits for doing nothing.

The idea of the rubber room was to help teachers who were falsely accused by students...students who didn't like their teacher. It was usually one of those unruly brats who were taken to task by a teacher who cares. Brat gets torked off. Brat reports that teacher abused him. Teacher gets the rubber room whether deserved or not.

Unfortunately, there are some teachers who are abusive, or who have been arrested for drug posesion, or on DWI charges. Those who are truly guilty of obvious misconduct should be fired, not detained in the rubber room.

The public needs to be aware of this $35 million fiasco, which has been dumped on already overburdened taxpayers. Shame on the New York State Department of Education. It's more horse pucky as usual

For more details on The Rubber Room go to http://www.rubberroommovie.com/