Public Forum Needed for Transparency

[Older parent]

I have received an e-mail from the AA Board of Trustees. It suggests private 1 on 1 evaluations of the many disturbing issues recently raised. I feel public discussion leads to transparency far more quickly than private hidden meetings. Closed arenas make for convenient ways to hide or delay discussion. Come on Board help us out with facts and appropriate action.

[ClassOf19]

1 on 1 “Evaluations” is item 4 in their rule-book, as previously posted.

1. Ignore the message.
2. Obfuscate.
3. Change the subject.
4. Attack the messenger.

[Teacherese]

I could not agree more, Older Parent. We teachers have seen the divide-and-conquer strategy used here for years. It’s what Andy did when he insisted on having all those small-group meetings; it took months and resulted in no meaningful improvement, as he could always say, “You complained about X, but people in other groups disagreed with you. They think everything’s fine.”

AA has gotten by for years on an illusion of consensus, or at least of consent. We need transparency and a thorough housecleaning… and a focus on the real problem: How are we going to keep the school alive? How are we going to be true to our mission? The past is over and done with. What can we effectively do to make sure past mistakes won’t be repeated?

We can’t be sure of anything unless we let the sunshine in!

[Not Surprised]

Instead of hiding behind “the Board” where is the school’s illustrious leadership? Why is Stephanie so quiet? Who really is speaking for the school’s admin? Or are they simply running everything through their attorneys at Modrell and running up outrageous legal fees?!?!

[Wow]

1 on 1 meetings will not do anything but attack the messenger. The administration wants nothing more than to sweep this under the rug. Please push for a PUBLIC forum. There is more to this than a financial problem, there is no real leadership at the school.

[Please Help]

I am dismayed to hear that the board is contacting individuals while simultaneously failing to supply the community with anything but a single dismissive e-mail. Please resist the board’s attempt to divide and conquer. We all deserve open and safe discussions.

[ClassOf19]

1) The board needs to immediately terminate Andy Watson, and start a search for a new head-master. This is very clear given the millions and millions lost under his watch, and the greed shown by his outrageous salary and year-to-year raises approved to no-one other than himself. This is a complete failure on his part, not negotiable. Shame on you Andy.

2) If the board does not immediately execute #1, the board, in its entirety, needs to be immediately terminated, and a start for a new board needs to be initiated. The Academy will die under the existing management, the numbers prove this out, it’s very simple. This *must* not be tolerated, period.

3) Existing board members may apply for a board position, to be approved by the teachers who know the school and mission best. They may submit their resume describing how they intend to protect the future of the school, and the vision entrusted in it.

4) Moving forward, the teachers and parents will be given full visibility into the new board structure, and be allowed to both have access to the bylaws of the institution, and have a representative at the board meetings. No more secrets, no more greed, no more operating behind the iron curtain of self-profiting. Full disclosure and transparency moving forward – very simple, very fair.

5) The board of trustees works for the school, not the other way around. Period.

[Employee, Parent, and Volunteer]

Our Board members are made up of hard working current parents, parents of alumni, and alumni (I may be missing others). They have all dedicated many hours to our school and they are proud members of our community. We thank them for their dedicated service. Right now, they just needed a wakeup call, a splash of water to the face, to see the thousands of outcries from so many community members for immediate transparency and immediate change of Head of School.

Board Members: I have trust that you will be transparent to the community and demonstrate that 1) You are aware of our financial situation and how it happened. 2) That you have already initiated some changes to the budget spending and that employees have been working together to cut costs where possible and absorbing work from positions that will not be filled. 3) That you are listening and willing to make the hard choices for the better of the school. As it is becoming more and more apparent, it is not just a handful of community members unhappy with our current Head of School but it is a very large group ready for a change in our Leadership. [removed by administrator]

Announcing our Head of School’s retirement and acknowledging his years of service is step 1. Time to move on.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 4 months ago by savetheacademy.

[savetheacademy]

A quick reminder: While we don’t wish to censor anyone, personal attacks or insinuations are not appropriate for this forum. Thanks.

[Mrs Wilson]

Enrollment contracts are due next week (2/15). Anyone feeling conflicted about renewing before we hear a response from the school?

[anxious dad]

Enrollment is all my wife and I have talked about since we read the letter. And watching KOB channel 4 last night made my blood boil.
Amazing how much chatter there is among parents – so many questions still unanswered from the board…

[Making A Change]

Moving kids to gifted programs at APS, Desert Ridge. We know someone who moved their child from the Academy in 6th grade to Desert Ridge. They are in all gifted programs and actually, despite being in the advanced math group at the Academy in 6th, started a little behind in the gifted math for 7th grade at APS. They quickly caught up though as there were only 9 students in the gifted math class. I could hardly believe it!

Apparently if your child was in gifted for elementary that status stays with them so they don’t need to retest. If not, then you can independently have your child tested for gifted during the spring or summer to get them on the right track.

Also heard that getting a child into Cottonwood Classical (a nationally recognized charter school) on the lottery is easier in 9th and 10th as some students chose to leave and go back to their local schools in those grades. However, Academy students would have to make up a few classes online prior to starting if they wanted to stay on track with their grade level at CCPS because CCPS starts their high school curriculum in 8th grade. If your child plays a sport, they can try out for their local APS school team if it is not offered on a competitive level at CCPS.

[Daffodil]

To honor the transparency we are all requesting, could Mr. Hibbett answer two questions? How many parents worked on that letter, and did Mr. Hibbett actually call or email the head of the board requesting a meeting to discuss the issues prior to posting his letter? The answers don’t change many of his points, but as a member of this community I would like to know whether the trustees refused to meet with him which has been suggested in a number of responses.

[Roses]

To Making a Change: Your child’s needs may very well be met at Desert Ridge, but “gifted classes” aren’t the only reason we chose Albuquerque Academy for our children’s education. There are so many other factors at play. I know many families with students at Desert Ridge, La Cueva, and Cottonwood Classical. I continue to be grateful for the education and experiences that my children received at Albuquerque Academy. It was worth every penny!
To Daffodil: You raise some good points…I’m also interested in hearing the answers to your questions.

[Teacherese]

To Daffodil: I actually have some answers to your questions. The letter was written by a group of about a dozen parents, is my understanding, and was the product of a LOT of research, verification and rewriting. Mr. Hibbett is the brave soul who was willing to put his name to it, but he’s not alone.

In answer to your second question – I don’t know if Mr. Hibbett contacted the board first (although judging from the letter sent out by Mr. Honegger on the board’s behalf, it would seem he did not). But what I can tell you is that the concerns in the letter have all been raised repeatedly by faculty over the last couple of years. Mr. Watson and Mr. Honegger have deflected our questions time and time again, relying on a divide-and-conquer strategy. As I said elsewhere on this forum, Mr. Watson divided the faculty and staff into small groups for meetings with him last year. Unfortunately he used this situation to his own advantage; if someone talked about a problem, he could (and did) say, “Well, people in the other groups don’t agree with you.”

I don’t know Mr. Hibbett personally, but I gather he was aware of the futility of trying to have a one-on-one meeting with these folks. That’s my guess, anyway.

[Author]

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