November 2013

Orange County Assembly of Governments Meeting

Agenda TBD, the status of water and sewer for Rogers Road will be discussed

Date: 

Thursday, November 21, 2013 - 7:00pm

Location: 

Southern Human Services Center

Public Input Session on Orange County Manager Selection Criteria #1

More information:

 

Media Contact

Donna Baker

Clerk to the Board of Orange County Commissioners

Phone: 919-245-2130

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

ORANGE COUNTY SEEKS PUBLIC INPUT ON MANAGER SELECTION

ORANGE COUNTY, NC (November 8, 2013) — Do you have an interest in the future of Orange County and how the County operates? The Orange County Board of Commissioners has retained Springsted Incorporated to assist them in recruiting candidates for the position of County Manager. An important part of the selection process involves obtaining public input concerning what qualities, qualifications and experience you believe are important characteristics for the County’s next County Manager to possess. 

If you would like to know more about what the County Manager’s responsibilities are, why their selection is important to the County and provide your opinions concerning the qualities, qualifications and experience that the Board of Commissioners should consider when selecting the County’s new Manager you are invited to attend one of two (2) meetings with Springsted representatives on:

  •  
    • Wednesday, November 20th in the Southern Human Services Center, 2501 Homestead Road, Chapel Hill, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
    • Tuesday, November 26th in the Orange County Main Library, 137 West Margaret Lane, Hillsborough, Main Meeting Room, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

For more information please contact Mr. John Anzivino, Senior Vice President of Springsted at 804.726.9750

Date: 

Wednesday, November 20, 2013 - 7:00pm to 8:30pm

Location: 

Southern Human Services Center

Public Input Session on Orange County Manager Selection Criteria #2

Date: 

Tuesday, November 26, 2013 - 7:00pm to 8:30pm

Location: 

Orange County Main Library, 137 West Margaret Lane, Hillsborough, Main Meeting Room

Rogers Road Proposal Under Consideration this Week Deserves Support

My op-ed from today arguing that the proposal under consideration this Thursday reflects the best of our progressive traditions while beginning to repay our debt to the Rogers Road community:

In 2011 a conservative faction of the Greensboro City Council moved to expand their White Street Landfill, located in the overwhelmingly African-American northeast portion of the city.

As the attorney for community members opposing this expansion as well as a long-term resident of Orange County, it was endlessly frustrating to me when expansion supporters pointed to our own Rogers Road to justify their decision.

CHHS Principal Unfamiliar with the Definition of Plagiarism

I was pretty surprised to read in the Independent that the new principal at Chapel Hill High has been copying large passages of text by other people and passing them off as her own memos, letter, and policies. What really shocked me, though was her indignant response:

"I'm not under the impression that I can't use that," [Sulura] Jackson said. "This is not anything that I'm selling. This is not anything that I'm using for personal gain."  

She is presumably being paid for serving as the pricipal, but she's trying to say that if she's not being graded, it shouldn't matter. Is this what we're teaching high schoolers?

And I was also disappointed, but not terribly surprised, to see this incredible response from the school system's rep:

Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools spokesman Jeff Nash referenced the school's transfers when discussing Jackson's case, blaming the public allegations against the new principal on "disgruntled folks over there who don't like change."

Justice United, Renters call on Towns and County to Support Tenants' Rights

Over the last two years, Orange County Justice United has been working with renters to address discrimination and wrongs they have faced as tenants. These efforts spurred Justice United to work with renters in our community and the UNC Civil Law Clinic to develop the Declaration of Tenants' Rights and Responsibilities. The document, available in both English and Spanish, outlines renters' rights based on state statutes. 

Justice United and renters from our community have asked the Towns of Carrboro and Chapel Hill and Orange County to endorse this Declaration and help to distribute it to all tenants in their municipalities. More details can be found in this article in the Chapel Hill News. 

"Focused Dialog" about Glenwood/Carrboro Elementary programs

Just got the following somewhat cryptic press release from the CHCCSS. As usualy I had to download an open a Word doucment and get more than halfway through it before I could even figure out what the topic is ("Enrollment Levels at Glenwood Elementary School").To learn more about this issue, see the recent Indy story: Redistricting Rankling Carrboro Parents.

I can theoretically understand the value of this type of  meeting, but it's hard not to feel like the schools would prefer that most of us are seen and not heard.

 

Focused Dialogue

6:00 p.m. - Monday, December 2 - East Chapel Hill High

 

Chapel Hill, NC - The goals, vision, and strategies of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools (CHCCS) long range plan are rooted in a set of guiding principles. These guiding principles were crafted after significant input from staff, parents, community, and students. One of those principles reads "We believe in a culture that promotes collaboration, civility, mutual trust, and community partnerships."

In support of that belief, the administration of the CHCCS will be initiating focused dialogues in an effort to engage parents in meaningful conversations on important issues that impact our schools. Furthermore, it is our intent to provide parent representatives with accurate information about current initiatives. The PTA Council offered a number of suggestions regarding the make-up of these dialogue groups.

In order to maintain a workable group, it has been suggested that for an elementary school issue, for example, no more than four individuals from each school will be selected. At least one representative should come from the School Improvement Team and one from the PTA. Depending on the issue, a faculty representative may also be included. Other parent representatives would be selected from the general school community. All parents and community members are welcome to attend as there will be an opportunity for those who are not at the discussion tables to share input electronically.

"The focused dialogue model has been used in other school districts with tremendous success," said Superintendent Tom Forcella. "Parents and community members have an opportunity to discuss issues in greater depth and collaborate on recommendations."

A pilot focused parent dialogue will be conducted on the topic, "Enrollment Levels at Glenwood Elementary School." All elementary schools are asked to participate as potential solutions could ultimately impact some or all elementary schools. The event is set for 6:00 p.m. on December 2, 2013, in the East Chapel Hill High Commons.

This particular topic generated significant input from parents at the November 7, 2013 Board of Education meeting and is not slated to come back to the Board until January. The December 2 focused dialogue will provide sufficient time for the administration to combine the input from this session with other available information in order to make a recommendation to the Board of Education.

It is important to know that the parent dialogue is not meant to keep people out, but rather to invite a more representative parent voice in the decision-making process. As always, parents may utilize all the existing communication avenues such as email and public comment to voice their opinion. The parent dialogues simply add another layer to the conversation.

Thank you for your consideration as we attempt to improve communications with parents and community.

 

Date: 

Monday, December 2, 2013 - 6:00pm

Location: 

East Chapel Hill High School

Advisory Boards

Last night the Town Council postponed their discussion of the new Advisory Boards until tonight 11/26 after the Central West Plan which begins at 6PM. I've emailed my suggestions but hope others will attend or write comments.

Come Beta Test the New OP!

After a considerable amount of work, we're pleased to announce that the next iteration of OrangePolitics is now entering a public beta. Please check it out and let us know what you think! Feel free to log in, mess around, look for old content, and try out posting and commenting! The site reflects a pull of our current database which I made about a week ago. Related, if you have recently changed your password, the change may not be reflected on the new site; if you're having trouble logging in, let me know and I'd be happy to help!

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