Milwaukee Ald. Tony Zielinski and MPS board member Meagan Holman hold a press conference outside Bay View Middle and High School after a fight there Oct. 18, 2012.
Hi, kids. Remember me? Yeah, yeah, long time no blog–in no small part because of what’s been going on at My School.
After a few years of slow but steady but slow progress, An Unfortunate Incident occurred earlier this fall at Bay View Middle and High School, where I occupy room 233 and remove extra letter e‘s from the word “argument” in student essays. And so even though last year the school and the community came together and confabbed and consulted the consultant to decide about what to do with Bay View, and even though we settled on bringing SpringBoard, the College Board’s official pre-AP curriculum, we had to start talking again about what to do with Bay View. Not that this is anything different–if the people of Bay View didn’t have The High School Question to talk about, they would be lost.
So here’s what’s afoot: Believe in Bay View, named by Bay Viewer and MPS school board member Meagan Holman, is seeking community support for and input on change at BVMHS. So far they have been six community listening sessions, and attendance has been slim. (The one I attended had a single community member attend. I have been told turnout at one school approached 60, but I haven’t confirmed that. Still, far fewer than 100 people have given their input so far.)
Which means you–yes, you!–still have a chance to influence this process. There are two last community meetings, both Monday, November 26, both at the school. One kicks off at 4:15 and the other at 6:30. (A session during the school day that day will solicit feedback from students; the 4:15 session is likely to be heavily attended by BVMHS teachers.) You’ll have the chance to get some updated stats on the school, talk to school representatives, and, most importantly, learn about more than a dozen proposed ideas for how the school should change over the coming years. Public input will be shaped into a recommendation to the school board in time for a January, 2013 vote.
Don’t miss out. It may feel like these opportunities come along every year about Bay View High School, but this time, finally, really, it may be the last.
