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Opinion
INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. — Some locals believe the school district rushed into implementation of International Baccalaureate without performing sufficient investigation into whether it was appropriate for Incline Village.
Harry Haaser — an original member of the task force that almost a year ago unanimously voted to support looking into the curriculum — said after the Incline Schools Reflective Task Force Committee began discussing IB as a potential solution for decreasing enrollment at Incline's schools, members of the committee were tasked with a fact-finding mission aimed at exploring other districts similar to Incline's, sending teachers to training sessions and canvassing the community to gauge support among parents.
Haaser said the mission never occurred.
“IB is a good program, and I have no problem with the teacher training elements, but I am frustrated with the process,” said Haaser, a former principal at Incline Middle School and an educator for more than 35 years. “We were going to set up some focus groups and explore whether the IB curriculum was appropriate for Incline, but instead we jumped right into implementation.”
However, Gary Lee, who supports IB implementation, said comprehensive investigation into the program's particulars was conducted throughout the life of the task force, which culminated in a unanimous vote, 23-0, on May 14, 2009, at its last meeting, to move forward with IB.
According to the minutes of the final meeting, “The IB Focus Group's goal is to continue to raise money to support the IB Program, to educate the community and to support the IB Program.
Incline High School French teacher Jeni Cross — who introduced the concept of IB to the task force — said the committee's final report contained proposals recommending the establishment of focus groups to educate parents, teachers and community members, but those recommendations were skipped when then-superintendent Paul Dugan expressed enthusiasm for IB.
According to the May 14 meeting minutes describe Dugan saying he “is a strong supporter of IB and it will set the bar higher for Incline schools.”
“The committee deferred to the district, which had the leadership and expertise in regard to implementing educational reforms,” Cross said. “Whether the recommendations set forth in the final document were followed to the letter is beside the point. The district decided to move forward, and after getting off to a rocky start, they're on the right track.”
Lee said support to move forward with IB was overwhelming.
“We chose IB because we wanted to avoid a controversial program,” Lee said. “You never get 100 percent buy-in on any subject, but IB was the dominant discussion of the reflective task force, focusing on pluses and minuses of the program. Most of the feedback was positive.”
Incline resident John Eppolito, an outspoken opponent of IB implementation, said the lack of information initially available spurred him to conduct his own investigations into the program.
“I never intended to begin (an anti-IB movement),” Eppolito said. “I went to the district with questions about IB and failed to receive satisfactory answers. So I started doing research and the more I looked into it, the more I didn't like what I found.”
Lee said thorough investigation into IB was conducted over the four-month life of the reflective task force.
“If members of the committee wanted more information, we went out and got it,” Lee said. “My impression was that by the end of the committee meetings people were comfortable with moving forward, and I think the vote reflects that.”
Harry Haaser — an original member of the task force that almost a year ago unanimously voted to support looking into the curriculum — said after the Incline Schools Reflective Task Force Committee began discussing IB as a potential solution for decreasing enrollment at Incline's schools, members of the committee were tasked with a fact-finding mission aimed at exploring other districts similar to Incline's, sending teachers to training sessions and canvassing the community to gauge support among parents.
Haaser said the mission never occurred.
“IB is a good program, and I have no problem with the teacher training elements, but I am frustrated with the process,” said Haaser, a former principal at Incline Middle School and an educator for more than 35 years. “We were going to set up some focus groups and explore whether the IB curriculum was appropriate for Incline, but instead we jumped right into implementation.”
However, Gary Lee, who supports IB implementation, said comprehensive investigation into the program's particulars was conducted throughout the life of the task force, which culminated in a unanimous vote, 23-0, on May 14, 2009, at its last meeting, to move forward with IB.
According to the minutes of the final meeting, “The IB Focus Group's goal is to continue to raise money to support the IB Program, to educate the community and to support the IB Program.
Incline High School French teacher Jeni Cross — who introduced the concept of IB to the task force — said the committee's final report contained proposals recommending the establishment of focus groups to educate parents, teachers and community members, but those recommendations were skipped when then-superintendent Paul Dugan expressed enthusiasm for IB.
According to the May 14 meeting minutes describe Dugan saying he “is a strong supporter of IB and it will set the bar higher for Incline schools.”
“The committee deferred to the district, which had the leadership and expertise in regard to implementing educational reforms,” Cross said. “Whether the recommendations set forth in the final document were followed to the letter is beside the point. The district decided to move forward, and after getting off to a rocky start, they're on the right track.”
Lee said support to move forward with IB was overwhelming.
“We chose IB because we wanted to avoid a controversial program,” Lee said. “You never get 100 percent buy-in on any subject, but IB was the dominant discussion of the reflective task force, focusing on pluses and minuses of the program. Most of the feedback was positive.”
Incline resident John Eppolito, an outspoken opponent of IB implementation, said the lack of information initially available spurred him to conduct his own investigations into the program.
“I never intended to begin (an anti-IB movement),” Eppolito said. “I went to the district with questions about IB and failed to receive satisfactory answers. So I started doing research and the more I looked into it, the more I didn't like what I found.”
Lee said thorough investigation into IB was conducted over the four-month life of the reflective task force.
“If members of the committee wanted more information, we went out and got it,” Lee said. “My impression was that by the end of the committee meetings people were comfortable with moving forward, and I think the vote reflects that.”
The task force
The Incline Schools Reflective Task Force Committee was established in February of 2009 by then Washoe County School District Superintendent Paul Dugan. The committee met twice a month for a four-month period to form solutions for combating declining enrollment and other district-related problems. The meetings began in early February of 2009 and ended in May of the same year.
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