The Alliance for Quality Public Schools was formed by Karen Teja, Jan Tanner, Tami Hasling, John Garten, as well as myself and numerous others in 2003.
It was used as a springboard to elect Tami Hasling to the School Board in 2005. I assisted with the appointment of Jan Tanner to the treasurer position through the intervention of then board president Sandy Shakes.
Through the efforts of the Alliance, a more moderate and less strident voice was established at the board level.
By 2007 Jan Tanner would be formally elected to the BOE where she was elected to a full term subsequent to her winning a recall election where she ran against Sandy Shakes
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Friday, May 29, 2009
"Yes She Can Campaign"
The "Yes She Can Campaign" of Delia Armstrong Busby is launched. With a career focussed on the interests of students and parents, Busby represents the best of the best when it comes to public service.
During her tenure on the school board, she helped fund the parent empowerment program with a sizable grant and assisted the training of parents in dealing with the affairs of their children in school.
She assisted parents and teachers in building teacher contracts that protected the rights of teachers and the needs of students and families.
She supported the building of Christa McAuliffe Elementary School on the eastside to empower all regions of the district to have needed access to schools.
She voted to support the continuance of neighbhorhood schools. She vote to allow parents a voice in schools where the environment was not in the best interest of students and families.
She facilitated community meetings where parents could voice concerns.
She supported and assisted achievement for students and staff
She understands the needs for and the validity of the master agreement to protect the interests of educators
She insisted that the superintendent contract included that the superintendent is responsible for student achievement and that this must be included in the contract between the board of education and the superintendent.
She understands perseverance overcoming unfair actions as an employee and moving to serve the community as the first African American woman to serve as a member of the district eleven school board in 143 years.
She has worked to develop the community involvement in the newly formed Irving Village non profit to stop the urban decay promoted by the closure of nine district eleven schools.
During her tenure on the school board, she helped fund the parent empowerment program with a sizable grant and assisted the training of parents in dealing with the affairs of their children in school.
She assisted parents and teachers in building teacher contracts that protected the rights of teachers and the needs of students and families.
She supported the building of Christa McAuliffe Elementary School on the eastside to empower all regions of the district to have needed access to schools.
She voted to support the continuance of neighbhorhood schools. She vote to allow parents a voice in schools where the environment was not in the best interest of students and families.
She facilitated community meetings where parents could voice concerns.
She supported and assisted achievement for students and staff
She understands the needs for and the validity of the master agreement to protect the interests of educators
She insisted that the superintendent contract included that the superintendent is responsible for student achievement and that this must be included in the contract between the board of education and the superintendent.
She understands perseverance overcoming unfair actions as an employee and moving to serve the community as the first African American woman to serve as a member of the district eleven school board in 143 years.
She has worked to develop the community involvement in the newly formed Irving Village non profit to stop the urban decay promoted by the closure of nine district eleven schools.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
When School Bells Lose Their Ring
When School Bells Lose Their Ring
e-mail to a friend | print this | link to this
Contributed by: delia armstrong-busby on 4/29/2009
Reflections on the passing of your neighborhood schools...
New school buildings, new furnishings, great curb appeal. These are blessings coming with living in the newer parts of town --- often where the money is budgeted to put the new schools in place.
But watch out if you purchased your home in the older parts of your school district. You may find that your school district starts a process of neighborhood school deconstruction ---- which may mean a nightmare in some homes.
If you fail to live in the newer parts of town, you may find your school on the chopping block some time in the future.
Our property taxes don't go down immediately. But your neighborhood school services disappear. It can take about twenty-four to thirty six months for the value of your home to go down.
So, you keep paying the same prices for school taxes while neighborhood school services are reduced.
Yes, we hear this scenario is the right thing to do.
On the other hand, if your next move is out of the school district--- then what the school district says is a savings can be lost as the exodus away takes flight.
Picture neighborhood school fans flying the coop.
e-mail to a friend | print this | link to this
Contributed by: delia armstrong-busby on 4/29/2009
Reflections on the passing of your neighborhood schools...
New school buildings, new furnishings, great curb appeal. These are blessings coming with living in the newer parts of town --- often where the money is budgeted to put the new schools in place.
But watch out if you purchased your home in the older parts of your school district. You may find that your school district starts a process of neighborhood school deconstruction ---- which may mean a nightmare in some homes.
If you fail to live in the newer parts of town, you may find your school on the chopping block some time in the future.
Our property taxes don't go down immediately. But your neighborhood school services disappear. It can take about twenty-four to thirty six months for the value of your home to go down.
So, you keep paying the same prices for school taxes while neighborhood school services are reduced.
Yes, we hear this scenario is the right thing to do.
On the other hand, if your next move is out of the school district--- then what the school district says is a savings can be lost as the exodus away takes flight.
Picture neighborhood school fans flying the coop.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
We Are Barak Hussein Obama
Delia Armstrong Busby was the first African American principal in Colorado Springs and the first to serve on the District 11 Board of Education.
Provided by: Delia Armstrong Busby
The inauguration of Barack Obama leads me to these reflections---
The people of Colorado Springs were poised for change when Barack Hussein Obama appeared on the electoral scene. My first wave of "what in the world is happening here?" occurred during the democratic caucus in our neighborhood which is near Wasson High School.
My husband (Ron) and I arrived at Audubon Elementary School to find the largest democratic turnout in30 years. The next eye-opener was the campaign field workers at the Obama Party the evening of the caucus.
As newly selected Obama caucus delegates, Ron and I were surprised when we entered the Party at Phantom Canyon, to find a room full of energetic 20-somethings with faces aglow with happy and voices bubbly with "Yes, we can". It quickly reminded me of my days of high school supervision when the highlight of the evening might be stopping some youthful PDA (public display of affection). But the only PDA I found at Phantom Canyon was a philosophical love affair for Barack Obama.
This is my first experience with impassioned, youthful, campaigners in large numbers. To me it signals the changing of the generational guard. I am impressed.
Since moving to Colorado Springs in 1969, I have always had a personal sense of what I can do. And within this community, I have had the professional and personal opportunity of many firsts. This includes being the first African American female to be appointed to a high school principalship. In 1999, I became the first African American female elected to the Colorado Springs District Eleven School Board in over 140 years. Because of these experiences, the election of Barack Obama never seemed out of reach to me.
I certainly have been at the forefront of educational change in Colorado Springs for nearly40 years. My conclusion is that the community is empowering based on its perception of your ability to make a meaningful contribution. Obama arrived on the scene of a community hip-deep in a desire for better. A community still wanting to believe that America can indeed renew itself with the best leadership. There was and is a strong feeling of "we can be better" and "we can do better." Further, there are still numbers of people willing to extend themselves to make it so.
Since his election, the Obama team has been in constant touch keeping the dream of a renewed America alive. A day of service is being encouraged this month. The push for all of us to better our community by acting to make improvement or to just make a personal contribution to the common good is inspiring. We are Barack Hussein Obama. We make him possible because we make dreams come true when we continue to say yes to change and to hope and to seeing the possibilities of the new reality that emerges on Tuesday January 20, 2009.
Currently listening to:
Yes We Can: Voices of a Grassroots Movement (Barack Obama)
Released on: November 11, 2008
By: Various Artists and Barack Obama
Provided by: Delia Armstrong Busby
The inauguration of Barack Obama leads me to these reflections---
The people of Colorado Springs were poised for change when Barack Hussein Obama appeared on the electoral scene. My first wave of "what in the world is happening here?" occurred during the democratic caucus in our neighborhood which is near Wasson High School.
My husband (Ron) and I arrived at Audubon Elementary School to find the largest democratic turnout in30 years. The next eye-opener was the campaign field workers at the Obama Party the evening of the caucus.
As newly selected Obama caucus delegates, Ron and I were surprised when we entered the Party at Phantom Canyon, to find a room full of energetic 20-somethings with faces aglow with happy and voices bubbly with "Yes, we can". It quickly reminded me of my days of high school supervision when the highlight of the evening might be stopping some youthful PDA (public display of affection). But the only PDA I found at Phantom Canyon was a philosophical love affair for Barack Obama.
This is my first experience with impassioned, youthful, campaigners in large numbers. To me it signals the changing of the generational guard. I am impressed.
Since moving to Colorado Springs in 1969, I have always had a personal sense of what I can do. And within this community, I have had the professional and personal opportunity of many firsts. This includes being the first African American female to be appointed to a high school principalship. In 1999, I became the first African American female elected to the Colorado Springs District Eleven School Board in over 140 years. Because of these experiences, the election of Barack Obama never seemed out of reach to me.
I certainly have been at the forefront of educational change in Colorado Springs for nearly40 years. My conclusion is that the community is empowering based on its perception of your ability to make a meaningful contribution. Obama arrived on the scene of a community hip-deep in a desire for better. A community still wanting to believe that America can indeed renew itself with the best leadership. There was and is a strong feeling of "we can be better" and "we can do better." Further, there are still numbers of people willing to extend themselves to make it so.
Since his election, the Obama team has been in constant touch keeping the dream of a renewed America alive. A day of service is being encouraged this month. The push for all of us to better our community by acting to make improvement or to just make a personal contribution to the common good is inspiring. We are Barack Hussein Obama. We make him possible because we make dreams come true when we continue to say yes to change and to hope and to seeing the possibilities of the new reality that emerges on Tuesday January 20, 2009.
Currently listening to:
Yes We Can: Voices of a Grassroots Movement (Barack Obama)
Released on: November 11, 2008
By: Various Artists and Barack Obama
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Children Engaged:AVisit To the Pikes Peak Urban League Child Development Center
Children Engaged: A Visit to the Pikes Peak Urban League Child Development Center
Smiling faces highlighted by hopeful, enthusiastic eyes helped to communicate the effectiveness of the Urban League Child Development Center run by Mrs. G. (Mildred Galbreath).
The Pikes Peak Urban League Child Development is partnered with Hope On Line Academy to create the educational setting which captures the learning energies of these children who are aged from kindergarten to second grade.
Research demonstrates that the years before the third grade are crucial. With this development center as a staging ground, young minds are being effectively prepared with literacy and mathematical curriculum. This rich curricular content is enhanced by a student-teacher ratio of about one to four. Add to this certified social worker support. With the assistance of a credentialed instructional coach, students have the equivalent of individual learning plans supervised by qualified instructional specialists.
What a wonderfully well executed design --- not only for at risk early learners---- but any early learners.
Hats off to Mrs. G and her children loving staff and the curricular/instructional assistance provided through Hope On Line Academy.
Observation completed by Delia Armstrong-Busby, Milken Educator, former School Board Director
Children Engaged: A Visit to the Pikes Peak Urban League Child Development Center
Children Engaged: A Visit to the Pikes Peak Urban League Child Development Center
Children Engaged: A Visit to the Pikes Peak Urban League Child Development Center
Smiling faces highlighted by hopeful, enthusiastic eyes helped to communicate the effectiveness of the Urban League Child Development Center run by Mrs. G. (Mildred Galbreath).
The Pikes Peak Urban League Child Development is partnered with Hope On Line Academy to create the educational setting which captures the learning energies of these children who are aged from kindergarten to second grade.
Research demonstrates that the years before the third grade are crucial. With this development center as a staging ground, young minds are being effectively prepared with literacy and mathematical curriculum. This rich curricular content is enhanced by a student-teacher ratio of about one to four. Add to this certified social worker support. With the assistance of a credentialed instructional coach, students have the equivalent of individual learning plans supervised by qualified instructional specialists.
What a wonderfully well executed design --- not only for at risk early learners---- but any early learners.
Hats off to Mrs. G and her children loving staff and the curricular/instructional assistance provided through Hope On Line Academy.
Observation completed by Delia Armstrong-Busby, Milken Educator, former School Board Director
Children Engaged: A Visit to the Pikes Peak Urban League Child Development Center
Smiling faces highlighted by hopeful, enthusiastic eyes helped to communicate the effectiveness of the Urban League Child Development Center run by Mrs. G. (Mildred Galbreath).
The Pikes Peak Urban League Child Development is partnered with Hope On Line Academy to create the educational setting which captures the learning energies of these children who are aged from kindergarten to second grade.
Research demonstrates that the years before the third grade are crucial. With this development center as a staging ground, young minds are being effectively prepared with literacy and mathematical curriculum. This rich curricular content is enhanced by a student-teacher ratio of about one to four. Add to this certified social worker support. With the assistance of a credentialed instructional coach, students have the equivalent of individual learning plans supervised by qualified instructional specialists.
What a wonderfully well executed design --- not only for at risk early learners---- but any early learners.
Hats off to Mrs. G and her children loving staff and the curricular/instructional assistance provided through Hope On Line Academy.
Observation completed by Delia Armstrong-Busby, Milken Educator, former School Board Director
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Doubt:The Movie and Pedophilia in the Schoolhouse
Sister Aloysius, the catalytic character in the movie, Doubt; portrays the responsible educator confronted with the duty to act when faced with pedophilia in the schoolhouse.
My own experience with this duty to act was driven by the complaint raised by the boyfriend of a former student. The student, still traumatized by the experience of the sexual betrayal at the hands of a trusted staff member. I was newly appointed to my position as a high school principal, yet I did take the responsibility. At the time, the laws were different on one level, but the individual accountability for doing the "right thing" are always present. I initiated an investigation, talking to staff members who came forward with what they knew. It was a floodgate with yearbooks used to point out students who were victimized over time.
My investigation revealed that the staff member in question had seventeen years of complaints about inappropriate sexual relationships with male and female students.
After bringing this information to the superintendent, he then hired an investigator.
The investigator compiled an overwhelming body of evidence as a result of gathering signed statements from parents and students regarding the sexual activity with children in the school.
As the episode progresses, politics prevails. The individual in question is permitted to resign.
when he surfaces again it is as a staff member in an adjacent school district with a recommendation from a then member of the state board of education.
And parallel to the outcomes for the accused in the movie, the individual is left to repeat the behavior with a new audience of students.dophilia
My own experience with this duty to act was driven by the complaint raised by the boyfriend of a former student. The student, still traumatized by the experience of the sexual betrayal at the hands of a trusted staff member. I was newly appointed to my position as a high school principal, yet I did take the responsibility. At the time, the laws were different on one level, but the individual accountability for doing the "right thing" are always present. I initiated an investigation, talking to staff members who came forward with what they knew. It was a floodgate with yearbooks used to point out students who were victimized over time.
My investigation revealed that the staff member in question had seventeen years of complaints about inappropriate sexual relationships with male and female students.
After bringing this information to the superintendent, he then hired an investigator.
The investigator compiled an overwhelming body of evidence as a result of gathering signed statements from parents and students regarding the sexual activity with children in the school.
As the episode progresses, politics prevails. The individual in question is permitted to resign.
when he surfaces again it is as a staff member in an adjacent school district with a recommendation from a then member of the state board of education.
And parallel to the outcomes for the accused in the movie, the individual is left to repeat the behavior with a new audience of students.dophilia
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