Rowan-Salisbury ahead of others in using technology
I want to share some good thoughts about the Rowan-Salisbury School System after returning from the Summer Institute in Maiden.
The N.C. Department of Public Instruction sponsored the training session to better prepare teachers, administrators and support staff with implementation of the new national standards. These sessions and meetings allowed me and the other RSSS participants to network with educators from across the state. In doing this, I discovered that RSSS is ahead of many other school districts in the areas of media and technology.
Lori Nesbitt, the media specialist at Morgan Elementary School, and I participated in collaboration groups and learned that many other schools are still operating on a fixed media and technology schedule by teaching these standards in isolation.
When Lori and I shared how our district is collaborating and planning with our teachers to establish a seamless integration of the Instructional Technology Essential Standards (ITES) with flexible scheduling, they were amazed and a little jealous of how the Rowan-Salisbury School System’s teachers, media specialists and technology facilitators are able to accomplish this task. We answered lots of questions and gave suggestions on how this can be done.
I think Kelly Feimster and Phil Hardin deserve a pat on the back for guiding us in the right direction with the IMPACT model several years ago. By doing this, they have made it so easy for our teachers, media specialists, and technology facilitators to integrate and facilitate the implementation of the ITES standards
We are very lucky to have these two instructional leaders working in our school district. I was extremely proud to be a part of the RSSS family during this training.
— Mendy Benge
Rockwell
Vote is only hope for middle class and 99 percenters
The USA was founded as a constitutional republic, a representative democracy political system based upon the concept of “rule by the people.” We have always had push-back from the ultra-rich wanting more than their share, selfishly wanting what they want regardless of the effect on society, and wanting to elect their people.
There was a crisis peaking in the 1990s-2000s where corporations poured barrels of money into their lackeys’ coffers to affect elections. We were on the edge of a plutocracy (rule by the wealthy) when the bipartisan McCain–Feingold Act prohibited corporations from using their billions to buy elections.
Over time, the rich 1 percent folks fought back. So now the Citizens United v. FEC Supreme Court case prohibits restriction of political expenditures by corporations. I am afraid the USA is a plutocracy now. The rich are now going to get the best government money can buy! Oh yes, we will have “rule by the people,” but only the rich people.
The next step the ultra-rich will strive for is feudalism, a system for structuring society around relationships derived from the holding of land/money/power in exchange for service or labor.
The middle class is doomed. The only ray of hope is to elect candidates who will fight for the 99 percent, not ones that fight only for the elite 1 percent ultra rich.
— David Brown
Salisbury