We just got a comment saying Mars is gone - promoted of course.
leoniehaimson@gmail.com [nyceducationnews] <nyceducationnews@yahoogroups.com>
|
|
Mon, Jun 24, 8:03 PM (12 hours ago)
|
to Nyceducationnews@Yahoogroups.com
|
|
‘Fame’ High School Principal Leaving Post After Student Protests
Students
and faculty say Lisa Mars hasn’t prioritized the arts enough in her
push for strong academics at the Manhattan public school
Students
from Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and
Performing Arts celebrated before their graduation ceremony at David
Geffen Hall, Lincoln Center, in Manhattan on Monday. Photo: Sarah Blesener for The Wall Street Journal
By
Leslie Brody
Updated June 24, 2019 7:18 pm ET
The
principal of Manhattan’s famous high school for the arts, known as
LaGuardia, is leaving after protests by students and teachers saying she
didn’t prioritize the arts enough in her push for strong academics.
Principal
Lisa Mars will join the city Department of Education this summer in a
senior post in academic instruction, according to the head of the city
principals union.
A Department of Education spokesman didn’t confirm the change. Dr. Mars didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Before the announcement, questions mounted about her future when she didn’t attend graduation Monday, held at Lincoln Center.
The
Upper West Side school hit the spotlight in the 1980 film “Fame.” In
recent days, some seniors had threatened to turn their backs on Dr. Mars
during the graduation ceremony and avoid shaking her hand.
Last
month many held a sit-in to call for more focus on arts education, and
heavier weighting of artistic talent in admissions at the public school,
formally called Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art
and Performing Arts.
Alumni include a host of actors, artists and entertainers, including Al Pacino, Eartha Kitt, Jennifer Aniston and Wesley Snipes.
Tension
about how to balance arts and academics had simmered for years, even
before Dr. Mars arrived in 2013, and grew more intense in recent months,
said students and faculty. Some said there was more pressure to take
Advanced Placement classes, some arts classes were cut, and rehearsal
time was reduced, among other changes.
The faculty
union held a poll this spring in which 88% of participants said they had
no confidence in Dr. Mars, said Richard Titone, a music teacher. The
faculty, he said, has had less say in admissions, and some brilliant
young musicians were rejected due to their middle-school grades.
“There was less input from teaching artists,” Mr. Titone said. “There was no ability to compromise.”
Admission is highly competitive. Students must audition and supply academic records.
This
high-achieving specialized high school, with a 99%-graduation rate last
year, is more diverse than eight elite public high schools where
admission is determined by a single exam. That test, which has fierce
critics and staunch defenders, has been at the center of debate about
fair access to opportunity.
Among LaGuardia’s 2,800
students last year, 46% were white, 20% Asian, 18% Hispanic and 10%
black by city data. It said 31% faced economic hardship, compared with
71% of students in the system.
Mark Cannizzaro,
president of the Council of School Supervisors & Administrators,
said Dr. Mars had been considering a department offer of a new position
long before the spring protests.
When she arrived at
LaGuardia, senior department officials were concerned there wasn’t
enough emphasis on academics, he said, and she valued the arts while
pursuing curricular rigor.
“I’ve been to outstanding
performances there, like nothing I’ve ever seen before by high-school
students,” Mr. Cannizzaro said. “I don’t think anyone could fairly say
it wasn’t focused on the arts.”
Write to Leslie Brody at
leslie.brody@wsj.com
I've seen no news reports but this petition has been signed by almost 15,000 people. I don't see how a principal would be barred unless students planned to protest her being there and the DOE caves. Now if there's a back story and alumni with pull have gotten to the DOE then this could be possible.
Petition update
Principal Barred From LaGuardia's Graduation!
Jun 24, 2019 —
Dear friend of LaGuardia High,
In response to years of overwhelming evidence of incompetence, as
well as the public outcry from concerned people like you, the Department
of Education has finally taken action: Principal Lisa Mars has been
barred from attending graduation of the 2019 class!
This is only the beginning of LaGuardia's renaissance. We are
committed to restoring the beleaguered arts programs of our school, with
leadership who understands the importance of talent over tests.
Stay tuned for more news this coming week!
#BringFameBack
Here are some articles.
May 24, 2019 - Published May 24, 2019 at 11:08 AM | Updated at 5:46 PM EDT on May .... Some auditions that were given perfect scores were rejected because of a C average in one class, ... LaGuardia school is led by its principal — Dr. Lisa Mars. ... in New York City has been raging amid admission questions of race, ...
Missing:
barred | Must include:
barred
By Alice Gainer June 3, 2019 at 6:50 pm ... According to some students, alumni and parents, the current principal, Dr. Lisa Mars, has placed a bigger focus on middle school academic records and attendance when it comes to accepting ... But the Department of Education says the current policy has been in place for over a ...
Jan 11, 2017 - Update: LaGuardia's Failing Principal Gets Tenure! ... grades over artistic talent in a school with an historical graduation rate of 98%. ... June 2, 2019 ... But students say Dr. Mars has gone too far by enforcing a decade-old .... continues to attend LaG events, I'm sad and infuriated that Lisa Mars has been ...