May 20, 2008 — The newly appointed Commissioner of Education, LaVerne Terry, was not disappointed by the small crowd that turned out at a public forum on St. Thomas Tuesday evening.
It was the third such forum Terry has held, following ones on St. Croix and St. John, intended to give the public a voice in defining the goals and issues surrounding education in the territory.
"We will not be discouraged by numbers," Terry said as she greeted the barely two dozen people dotted around the large auditorium at Charlotte Amalie High School.
Some of her goals for the territory include more innovative instruction and recognition of different learning styles, Terry said in her opening remarks. One change she suggested is a five-year high school program for certain students.
"Even if they're going into the technical line, you still have to read; you still have to do math," Terry said. "Your plumber needs to know certain things about science. Should we push them out because they haven't graduated in four years?"
Terry, who is certified in elementary as well as special education, wants a greater emphasis on early-childhood education to help avoid the challenge of students trying to catch up in later years.
"In California they plan their prisons by determining how many students are not reading and writing at grade level in third grade," Terry told the group.
Audience members peppered her with a range of questions, at least three relating to special education.
The Department of Education's director of human resources, Alscess Lewis-Brown, took the mike and confessed that she's trying to fill 17 special-education positions before next year, a problem exacerbated by a national shortage of special-ed teachers and challenges of acclimation to island life.
"When we bring the recruits here, it's difficult to find housing, and some take awhile to adjust," Lewis-Brown said. "People pay them top dollars. They're not easily available."
Terry talked about plans to examine the effectiveness of the territory's transition classes designed for students who would otherwise be retained. One teacher in the audience called the classes a failure.
Asked about the possibility of academic deans being appointed to handle discipline, freeing up administrators to do their jobs, Terry said it's an idea she's familiar with and will consider, but pointed out the staffing size is what it is.
Finally, she was asked about the block scheduling system, where classes meet for longer periods. She hasn't evaluated them, but "the whole premise behind block scheduling is to do deeper investigation, without interruption," she said. She continued, "If that's not happening, then you really shouldn't expect that just because you have a longer period of time you get greater results."
Two juniors from CAHS politely took on the superintendent, who then invited them to join an advisory group of students she plans to establish to keep her informed. One queried her about security at the school, and was told a fence is being installed, but Terry acknowledged more are needed at campuses around the territory. The other student wanted to know about plans to improve the cooking.
"It takes a student to ask the tough question," Terry said, in good humor, adding that she's actually speaking with the federal government about ways to improve the school lunch program.
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