Educator Fail: Black teacher makes inappropriate comment to student

It has been reported that Leslie Ranier made debasing comments to a Black student in her classroom.  The comments are offensive but not surprising given the type of world that we live in today.  Yes, I say not surprising because we live in a society in which too many Black people feel that it is acceptable and warranted to degrade each other.

“looks [like a] little chocolate boy,” a “chocolate that nobody wanted.”

There are so many negatives in this world that Black children have to deal with and it is completely sad that one of those things has to be sabotage inflicted on them by someone that is in a position of power to help them succeed.  It is especially troubling when that person is someone that comes from their own community. 

Ms. Ranier and one too many like her make it difficult to propel Black excellence to the forefront where it should be.  Her paycheck should not be earned by giving her access to even one child who would be at risk of being deterred in pursuing their best.  There are expectations that all children should have and a safe school environment is one of them.  This woman has failed in her position of educator and protector.

I speak a lot about the importance of protecting and educating our children because all of our children deserve healthy environments that include supportive and inspiring people surrounding them.  Leslie Ranier is one less person to be included in that effort.

The Best Education In America Is Still For the Wealthy and Segregated

It is all over the web today and in the "mainstream" media that Kelley Williams-Bolar, a single Ohio mother, was sentenced to ten days in jail and three years probation for fraud and theft because she sent her children to a school that was not zoned for her living area in an underprivileged and under-served neighborhood!

I am not saying that people should break laws that are in place but I am saying that it is time for some education laws to be changed!  The judge in this case failed epically.

Williams-Bolar alleged she was being singled out.
"I don't think they wanted money?" Williams-Bolar said. "They wanted me to be an example."

Cosgrove confirmed the viewpoint.
"I felt that some punishment or deterrent was needed for other individuals who might think to defraud the various school districts," Cosgrove said.

The American educational system is a fraud!  Judge Patricia Cosgrove could have brought emphasis to the disparity in education based on residency instead of using the case of Kelley Williams-Bolar as an example to deter other parents from resorting to falsifying a residency to obtain a better education for their children.  Judge Cosgrove has ruled that access to a great education for your child in America means having the right zip code.

Pastor Lorenzo Glenn of Macdeonia Baptist Church stood before the bench and also addressed the judge before sentencing. He, too, asked for leniency, saying his own church has a mentoring program well suited for probation in lieu of prison time.

Glenn told the judge that he has known Williams-Bolar for more than 20 years and was ''overwhelmed'' by the news of her convictions Saturday night.

''This is a serious matter, but by all means,'' Glenn said, ''it was done to help her children.''

The effort put into prosecuting the case, Glenn added, ''is just sad. When I see all the media here today, you'd think it was a serial killing.''

Newly elected Governor Kasich might want to consider taking a look at this case because it is really isn't the best publicity for the state of Ohio.

Education, employment and residence in America are controlled by the privileged in our society and still utilized as a way of determining someone's worth.  There is no worthwhile reason why any child living in America shouldn't have the same opportunities for a great education.  Should there have been acknowledgment that the way in which Mrs. Bolar tried to attain a better education for her children by breaking school residency laws was wrong? Yes.  But in no way should she have been sentenced in the manner that she was because now the judge has taken away her ability to attain her degree in teaching which would have provided a better life for her children and herself.  So really what did the judge prove other than the fact that she can judicially steal an education.

Creating an educational system that offers the same quality education to all students no matter where you live is what is necessary in America because property tax based education funding automatically creates a disadvantage for those that live in less privileged areas.  Corporations should also be required to commit to funding better schools as well.  Either we commit to educating all children equally by offering the best in education to all or we all are going to all suffer the repercussions.  Just look at your local news.

Let me not forget to mention the fact that the benevolent(hardly) Copley-Fairlawn school district paid for surveillance of Kelley Williams-Bolar and others to prove that they lived outside the district.  I wonder what that cost?

UPDATE:  Kelley Williams-Bolar has been released after serving one day in jail.

Common Pleas Judge Patricia Cosgrove gave Williams-Bolar credit for one day of time served when she was arrested and jailed on multiple felony charges in November 2009, court records show.

That is great Judge Cosgrove.  Now can all of you intelligent legal minds get together and do something about the felony charges.

Education offers the best success in life!

There is nothing worse to me than to see a child suffer not being taken care of in a manner that would offer them an opportunity at a great life. Granted there are no guarantees that there won't be pain or disappointment in life but when a child is sent out into the world unprepared and unsupported we all suffer the consequences! Education is important for everyone's life.

Watching Oprah on Monday allowed me entree into other lives that have been affected by an ENTIRE educational system that is flawed.  It is a damn shame that in 2010 the United States of America has a poor educational system at all. When my daughter was in the 5th grade the English department came up with an idea to use shaving cream and play-doh as motivational tools to encourage better spelling.  I flipped out I will admit it, but can you blame me?  I contacted the school along with other parents and "Operation Play-Doh" disappeared!  Now why should I have to look out for ridiculousness like that! 

The U.S. may have some of the "top schools" in the world (by it's own assertion) but when you are considered to be the most advantaged country in the world and ALL of it's children don't have access to the same quality of education because of perceived entitlements of wealth and location, then that system is screwed.  It takes much more effort to go out of your way to deny the many those things that are afforded to the few. So I absolutely take it personally because it is obviously meant that way. 

Education should not have any element of exclusivity.  Exclusivity is a bullshit term used by shallow and insecure people to justify their excess and delusions of greatness. Dumb ass Americans continually vote against their best interests-- probably thinking that the smaller the educated group is in America then all the better because it's easier to lead sheep rather than having an intelligent and well formed society.

I don't use the word hate often because it's usually reserved for things or people that evoke a gut-wrenching and visceral reaction in me that doesn't end well for the people on the receiving end of that emotion.  But I HATE the way this country operates in regards to the welfare of ALL of it's children.  When a bank account, zip code or skin color can determine whether a child gets the best advantages in life then you are begging to be hated!  There are some in this world who understand that you can't deny ANY child a quality education and expect good to come from it.

"I certainly owe all my success to having had a great education. I went to an incredible school, and I remember the teachers who encouraged me. I'm so lucky. I had what every kid should have, honestly," Gates said in an interview.
"We're a country that talks about equal opportunity, but without a great education, there is no equal opportunity. And we're a country that talks about how we're the best and the richest and we set an example. But without good education, our relative position in the world will decline." Bill Gates

Parents-- get your asses down to your child's school on the regular (yes, it is possible) so that your presence is known!  Ensure that your children begin school knowing:

• how to spell and write their name
• your name (not Mommy or Daddy), the one listed on your birth certificate
• their home phone number
• how to respect adults and how to respect themselves
• their ABC's (not the damn song)-- able to associate the pronunciation with the letter
• their 123's-- associating the pronunciation with the numeral
• colors (at least 10 of them, come on!)
• how to tie their shoes (it can be a true and easy sense of accomplishment for them)

The way to accomplish what is listed above... talk to and read to your children everyday.  No damn baby talk past a year old! (I would normally say not past 9 months but I'm flexible)  Always remain active in your unyielding advocacy for your child.

Teachers-- If you are not personable and don't like people then it is time for a career change so that you can get the hell out of my child's classroom. Choose to earn your living in any profession that doesn't require personal interaction, patience or compassion but get out of the classroom! I believe that being a teacher is a difficult job... just like parenthood it ain't for everybody. I accept no excuses when it comes to the people who have the access and power to influence my child's self-esteem and outlook on the world.  Go elsewhere! 

Having said all of that I do realize:

• you are bombarded on a regular basis with 30 or more different personalities
• some parents are not involved as they should be (parents get on your J-O-B)
• children today can behave as if they have no home training (parents get on your J-O-B)
• you work within a system that strangles your ability to do your job well (don't we all)
• not all of you are BAD teachers but TOO many of you are
• that to be a teacher you have to find a way to make it work

Non-white children tend to be the ones that suffer the most under the current U.S. educational system.  With bank accounts, zip codes and skin color reigning supreme in our social structure these categories almost always ensure that the majority of non-whites will be the least educated in America-- the land of the free and the home of the brave.  

Wake up people. Demand equal quality (not equality) in everything for the children and for yourselves!