Monday, May 14, 2012
Any child’s education is dependent on many variables beyond what happens in the classroom, and individuality, not a school system, is the greatest determinant of output and potential.
It is only here in America (especially here in Bloomfield Hills) where we feel that we are entitled to dictate to those whose profession is different than our own. To illustrate my point let’s look at Dr. Barr’s Letter to the Editor. Dr. Barr is an MD (medical doctor). Would any of us that are not MD’s think to judge Dr. Barr’s work? Probably not. In the here and now though there are many, including Dr. Barr, that are judging whether or not our education establishment is doing its’ job. They are doing this based on the most recent set of magazine rankings of our public high schools. The criterion that is used to set those rankings changes from year to year yet some of us hold those rankings in high esteem. As adults we should recognize …
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Bloomfield Hills Andover High School
4200 Andover Rd, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/opinion-stick-to-our-own-fields-and-let-the-educators-do-their-jobs
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Sunday, May 13, 2012
Here's what you might have missed this week.
It was a very busy week in Bloomfield news, but no story dominated conversations or engaged the community like the Bloomfield Hills Schools' high school consolidation bond vote. After nine years of community tumult, an overwhelming majority of 61 percent voted 'Yes' on the district's $59 million plan to revamp the Andover site for 1,650 students. The family of Bloomfield Township resident Susan Jarrell accepted an $18,000 check Tuesday from the slain Stoney Creek High School French teacher's students to help her three children. Jarrell, 45, was killed in January by ex-husband Kenneth Jarrell, 46, before he turned the gun on himself. For more on the Jarrell tragedy: Rabbi Joshua Bennett helps lead one of the largest Jewish congregations …
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Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Store
4107 Telegraph Rd, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/week-in-review-voters-choose-one-bhs-high-school-on-one-campus-bizarre-incident-at-joann-fabrics-and-roeper-founder-passes
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The Roeper School
41190 Woodward Ave, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/week-in-review-voters-choose-one-bhs-high-school-on-one-campus-bizarre-incident-at-joann-fabrics-and-roeper-founder-passes
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Bloomfield Hills Andover High School
4200 Andover Rd, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/week-in-review-voters-choose-one-bhs-high-school-on-one-campus-bizarre-incident-at-joann-fabrics-and-roeper-founder-passes
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/locations/7000560
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48th District Court, State of Michigan
4280 Telegraph Rd, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/week-in-review-voters-choose-one-bhs-high-school-on-one-campus-bizarre-incident-at-joann-fabrics-and-roeper-founder-passes
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Thursday, May 10, 2012
Education will now be compromised further by approval of high school consolidation millage.
Dear friends, We are not angry of the results of May 8 millage. The BHS board invested $3 million dollars to pass it. We are not angry about the 79 millions cost of the project but for the fact that no money, not a penny, is earmarked for education. We are angry with parents who neglected to understand that Andover ranked nationally #448 and Lahser #711. That only 49.4 percent of Andover and 48.2p percent of Lahser graduates were college ready and 23 percent of our students in colleges needed remedial courses. What do 'YES' parents think? A nice building is not a valued diploma. We are angry that previous millages that democratically rejected the very millage passed nevertheless on May 8 bond election. What will the school teach our …
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Bloomfield Hills Andover High School
4200 Andover Rd, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/opinion-we-are-not-angry-over-the-may-8-millage-results-but
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The district reached out to the community, listened to concerns, and developed a plan that, to this fiscal conservative, made sense.
As a Bloomfield Township parent, I want to take this opportunity to express my and my family's heartfelt gratitude to all involved in One Bloomfield United for their dedication and hard work in getting the school bond passed. I am proud of how they ran their campaign. They took "the high road" and focused on issues, not emotions. It was an intelligent campaign that brought many in our community together toward a common goal. I also want to acknowledge Superintendent Glass, the Board and his staff for their work in reaching out to the community, listening to their concerns, and developing a plan that, to this fiscal conservative, made sense. I choose to believe that those on both sides of this issue had the best interest of our students …
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Bloomfield Hills Andover High School
4200 Andover Rd, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/opinion-moving-forward-will-provide-an-important-life-lesson-for-our-children
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Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Now the focus moves toward implementing the two-year transition plan for a unified Bloomfield Hills High School under one roof.
The Bloomfield Hills Schools and Superintendent Rob Glass asked voters for one last shot to resolve a decade-long community dispute over the future of the district's high schools, and they got it Tuesday. The proposal approving use of $59 million in public bonds passed by a 61 percent margin, according to election results from the Oakland County Elections Office. Now, the focus will be on implementing a two-year, multifaceted transition plan to use the bonds to house both Andover and Lahser high schools under one roof on the current Andover campus. "Now we have to execute," Glass acknowledged amid the fervor of district supporters and volunteers celebrating the victory Tuesday evening at the Ultimate Soccer in Pontiac. "We've heard …
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Bloomfield Hills Andover High School
4200 Andover Rd, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/third-time-a-charm-for-bhs-high-school-consolidation-millage
1540298
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Tuesday, May 8, 2012
With all precincts reporting, the vote is 61 percent yes for the school bond. In Bloomfield Hills, Dul and McClure win commission seats, edging Monaghan.
Results of the Bloomfield Hills school bond vote will be reported as they come into the Oakland County Elections Office.
Supporters of the school bond gather to celebrate the passage and look forward; in Bloomfield Hills, Dul and McClure win commission seats.
Patch has been reporting live on today's voting all day, and has complete results from the Oakland County Elections Office.. Stay tuned for reaction on the outcome of the election. 10:45 p.m.: More than 200 people gathered at Ultimate Soccer in Pontiac for the One Bloomfield United celebration after the school bond proposal passed with 61 percent of the vote. Schools Superintendent Rob Glass said a few words, and Brandon Kaufman, spokesman for OBU, said, "The result of this vote clearly shows that the trust between the district and the community has been restored, and with the new school leadership it will remain." One Bloomfield United is the grassroots community group formed last year that supports the Bloomfield Hills Schools' …
Nearly a decade of often heated debate will culminate today in what the Bloomfield Hills Schools says will be the final vote on the high school dilemma.
Pass or fail, today's vote will mark the beginning of a new era in Bloomfield Hills Schools history. Here's a last-minute primer for those heading to the polls. For previous coverage, visit the Bloomfield Hills Schools High School Consolidation Millage Topic Page. The district plan calls for roughly $79 million to merge the high schools under one roof. Voters are being asked to approve $58.6 million in bonds (1.16 mills) to make it happen. The owner of a home with a taxable value of $250,000 is expected to pay $290 annually; and the owner of a home with a taxable value of $150,000 is expected to pay $174 annually. The district's existing bond debt, however, is set to decrease in 2014 due to a reduction in Sinking Fund millages approved …
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Bloomfield Hills Andover High School
4200 Andover Rd, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/critical-questions-about-the-bhs-high-school-vote
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/locations/6957038
Monday, May 7, 2012
Voters in the Bloomfield Hills Schools will have a big decision to make, and two positions on the Bloomfield Hills City Commission are at stake.
What's on the ballot? Bloomfield Hills Schools High School Consolidation Millage Where to go: There will be 28 polling precincts in the township open and staffed for the day. For a map and comprehensive list of Bloomfield Township polling precincts, consult the attached PDF, or visit the clerk's website. Sample ballots by respective precincts are also available here. Important details: Bloomfield Township Clerk's Office What's on the ballot? 1. Bloomfield Hills Schools High School Consolidation Millage 2. Two seats on the Bloomfield Hills City Commission. Five candidates seek two-year terms expiring May 2014. Where to go: Both city precincts will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on election day. Sample ballots for the primary are available …
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Bloomfield Township
4200 Telegraph Rd, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/need-to-know-voting-in-the-may-8-election
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City of Bloomfield Hills
45 E Long Lake Rd, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/need-to-know-voting-in-the-may-8-election
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/locations/6948988
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Congregational Church of Birmingham, United Church of Christ
1000 Cranbrook Rd, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/need-to-know-voting-in-the-may-8-election
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Readers Should Begin Anticipating What Happens After Tuesday.
Like many Patch readers, I will be voting YES on May 8th, 2012. Positions are now firmly established so I only urge everyone to mark the date and get to the polls. I also urge Patch readers to begin anticipating what happens after May 8th. I have been very frustrated at times with the mode of argument adopted by some no voters and members of 20/20 in particular. But, as far as I can tell, most members of 20/20 are interested, like many of us, in the reform of public education. Public education itself is under severe attack – not by those who want reform but by those who want it abolished completely. This is not hyperbole. On May 1st, when many of us were wrangling over how we could afford to renovate Andover to help with high school …
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Bloomfield Hills Andover High School
4200 Andover Rd, Bloomfield Hills, MI
/articles/opinion-get-out-go-vote-and-look-forward
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/locations/6946874
Ken Jackson
1:09 pm on Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Mr. Holt, I am sincerely delighted to hear you are not interested in (overly) criticizing teachers. I don't believe I implied that you were. What I did say, rather directly, was that you were actively distorting the letter writer's arguments or positions -- and you were doing so in a way that fit an altogether too familiar political chant. S. Sera seemed to me to be suggesting the complexity and … more ›