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I refer you to Mimi’s post on LiL as a reasonable response to the assertions made by Paul Georges in response to my recent Op-Ed on school hiring.  Georges obviously has a different perspective than mine. I have talked to many people and gotten very different responses—from one former teacher (who is now a principal) telling me how the administrative apprentice program made a difference, to teachers grateful for the in-district licensing and master’s degree programs, as well as hard-working paraprofessionals nurtured through the system to become special education teachers (30 to date). Many Lowell teachers take advantage of generous tuition reimbursement, a benefit not seen in most districts. And nearly 300 teachers participate (some as mentors) in the New Teacher Academy, not to mention the many who become math resource teachers, lead teachers, or instructional specialists—all administrative pathways filled predominantly from within. Despite what Mr. Georges says, the facts make a compelling case that there are opportunities for advancement for those employees with the skills and willingness to work for them.

I’ve always hated phrases such as “throws like a girl” and “girl pushups” because they indicate something presumably not as good as the male counterpart. As a lifelong feminist in the best sense of the word, this bothers me on two levels—first because being a girl is obviously not less than being a boy, and second because the phrase is used to mean not as good as how a boy does it— and even I can’t escape feeling that way about the phrase. For instance, I was not thrilled when I met a reader from Dracut last week, who told me he had been enjoying my blog all summer, which made me happy, until he added: “Kind of a girly blog, huh?” Girly blog? Me!? When I expressed my dismay, he defended his word choice by noting previous posts about flowers. We had published those posts, as well as others that could be considered girly if you prescribe certain aspects of life to one gender or another. (Men can’t like gardens? Women can’t enjoy sports?) In its purest sense, this is the whole point of feminism: to define interests and identity beyond the confines of gender. On the other hand, I feel compelled to admit that as a young mother, I was surprised when my toddler son was absolutely ecstatic by the weekly arrival of the garbage truck while his younger sister had a strong affinity for dolls. I have since recognized there are innate differences in many of us—my children included, but I spent my youth trying NOT to be confined by those roles. (I was the adolescent girl who wanted to play football rather than bake cookies despite my mother’s pleading.) At this point in my life, I surrender to the culture, genes, and tradition that make it so, but I will not yield on this universal truth: We are comprised of many facets that incorporate traditionally defined notions of masculine and feminine. I happen to throw a football well and can do a fair number of full push-ups. I also cry at sad movies and love to dance. As far as my blog, I make no apologies for the varied interests expressed here and only hope that you too are able to define yourself beyond gender.

New York City has its off-Broadway shows and so do we. It just may be the best-kept secret in town (no coverage from the local paper), but that doesn’t mean it’s not a good time: inexpensive, fun, and best of all, full of local talent—some of it right under our noses. Last night was the debut of the Image Theater’s Mill City Minutes 2007, a show of short plays and dances performed by local actors, directors, and writers. Shown in the photo, Team Rithim, a new dance troupe of teens from Lowell and Lawrence, do an amazing dance (energy, synergy and attitude) to their own mix of rap music. The dance was one of two in the show; the other was Catch 22 Dance Troupe, which performed to original music. A great thing about Mill City Minutes is the variety and range of the show—two very different dances and seven short plays, each lasting about 10 minutes: quick snippets and then it’s on to the next story. Overall, the plays were edgy, thought-provoking, touching, or laugh-out-loud funny—just what you would expect from alternative theater and definitely worth the $20 admission fee. In addition, it showcased talent from local folks I didn’t know were involved in theater such as Jim Neary from the school department, June Sweet (our own school committee secretary), Walter Wright (fellow LTC board member), and Kate Harmon (wife of Sean from Harmon’s Paints). The show also included a play written and directed by newcomer Kate Bisantz, a LHS alumna and recent graduate of Emerson College, whose Circle of Fire can only be described as a crazy, witty dash into sarcastic surrealism. (My husband and I loved it.) In fact, we enjoyed the entire evening and recommend you experience Lowell’s other street for theater. Now playing at the McDonough Theater (LHS Freshman Academy) at 30 Paige Street, see Mill City Minutes Sept. 21, 22 at 8 p.m.

Yesterday, under beautiful blue September skies, the Red Raider’s freshmen team faced their first opponents, the Nashua Panthers. The game was fraught with numerous interceptions, fumbles, and tackles on both sides, as might be expected from the novice teams. As seasoned spectators noted, “That’s freshmen football.” Dressed in my favorite purple color (as usual), I was horrified when I got to the game and realized purple was the Nashua team’s color.  Thankfully, math teacher and equipment manager, Chuck Bolianities, brought me a Lowell hat to wear so there would be no question about my loyalties. Even though the Red Raiders didn’t win: final score Panthers 27, Red Raiders 8, our team played a great game to launch their first season.

We’ve been hearing some disturbing accounts from people who occasionally have trouble accessing our blog. This is not good!  We are trying to understand if the problem has something to do with the configuration of our blog and need help in documenting these incidents.  In order to help us talk to the techies, please let us know if you have had this type of problem.  Any error messages, special circumstances or other information would be helpful. Thank you for your help!

Don’t complain if you’re not willing to be part of the solution. Next month will be the anniversary of the City Manager’s Gang Advisory Board, which includes Lowell leaders from the schools, colleges, police, city, and youth groups, as well as the district attorney’s office and the Sun. The group has been meeting monthly for a year to develop ways to address the gang problem in Lowell. At its most recent meeting on Monday, the board decided to mark its anniversary by hosting a forum to discuss the group’s efforts, accomplishments, and future goals with members of the community. The forum will be held the first week in November at MCC (exact date/time to be determined). At this public meeting, the board will share its work around gang prevention, inform the community how it can be involved (vital for lasting success), and listen to citizens’ concerns and suggestions. As a community, we must work together to reduce the impact of gangs and youth violence on our city. The reality is that gangs are with us and police suppression can only go so far; for instance, this summer there was a marked decrease in gang violence compared to last summer—a fact which Police Superintendent Lavallee attributes to increased police patrols (paid for by the state-funded Shannon Grant) and more summer jobs for youth (a result of the city manager’s efforts to recruit local businesses as employment partners). These short-term improvements are encouraging, but lasting solutions will require a multi-pronged approach with efforts involving not only law enforcement, but also education, community support, jobs, social services, the courts, and yes, citizen engagement. To find out how you can help, watch for the date, and attend the forum.

The Citywide Parent Council opens the school year with the annual “State of the Schools” address by Superintendent Karla Brooks Baehr, on Monday, September 17, 7:00 pm, at the Butler School.  From the CPC newsletter:

Here is an opportunity for parents to come and learn firsthand about a variety of important issues relating to their children’s education. Topics that are likely to be covered include:  staffing, budget, curriculum, professional development for teachers, testing, transportation and safety.  Start the school year with the information you need: come hear the Superintendent on the state of our schools.

Our schools need a strong parent voice for change and accountability.  The CPC is a great way to network with other parents and to learn what is happening in the school system as a whole, but it also helps parents become activists on important issues. If you have a child in the Lowell Public Schools, you are already a member of the CPC. If you haven’t been to a meeting, give it a try – you’ll meet some nice people and learn a lot about the schools!

As promised in an earlier post (see Who Wants to be a Principal?), we have the facts on school hiring practices.  Check out Jackie’s Op-Ed on this subject in today’s Sun (or read it here) which opens as follows: 

Finally, we can put to rest the unfounded accusations that the Lowell School District does not promote from within or hire residents for key jobs in our schools. At last week’s school committee meeting, the superintendent presented a “Personnel Report on Hiring Practices” that showed 66% of all those hired for administrative positions over the last seven years have been promoted from within, 33% of the new hires live in Lowell, and 38% were raised here. 

I never understood why geography should be more important than a person’s qualifications, especially when it comes to educating our children.  If all things are equal, then yes, to hire locally or from within is preferred; however, the rumors we’ve been hearing seemed to suggest that a person from Lowell is not only not preferred, but actually given less consideration than an outsider.  I think the report shows how false these rumors are.   

How did we get so lucky? Not only do we have the Merrimack Repertory Theater with a full season of varied plays, often edgy or thought-provoking, we have Actors, Inc doing Broadway shows (see previous post) and now the Image Theater is launching its third season with a return of the innovative “Mill City Minutes” – a series of original 10-minute plays, all by local playwrights and performed by local actors. These are really fun and they are coming up next weekend! Here are the details:

• When:  Two weekends – Sept. 14, 15 and Sept. 21 and 22, all performances at 8 pm.
• Where:  The McDonough Freshman Academy Theater
• Why:  Because you’ll love it!

Tickets are $19 in advance ($17 for Seniors and Students) or $20 at the door.  Call 978-441-0102.

I always turn first to the Ideas section of the Boston Sunday Globe and, today, found Lowell featured on the front page under the dismal headline:  “What Renaissance?”  The same section features an article about Jack Kerouac’s ‘newly-burnished reputation.’  Yes, the author of On the Road is now ‘in’, having been recently inducted into the Library of America, joining Hemingway, Faulkner, Steinbeck and other literary legends; while, of course, being the subject of much celebration here in town on the 50th anniversary of the publication of his major work.

Lowell, however, is apparently ‘out’.  According to the article, Lowell’s heyday is over, and the ‘Lowell miracle’ is being questioned by many, including our own Bob Forrant, professor of regional economics at UML.  The criticisms seem to be that Lowell’s emphasis has been on large construction projects (such as the Arena, the National park and the stadium) to the detriment of the working class, and that city officials have consistently over-emphasized the city’s gains.   The really damning statistic is that Lowell’s poverty rate went up astronomically between 1980 and 2000, compared with Brockton, Fall River and Worcester.  This is worrying and gives credence to the fear, expressed by city council candidate Darius Mitchell in the last election, that there are ‘two Lowells.’

It might be interesting to graph Kerouac’s reputation alongside of Lowell’s.  Jack Kerouac came out of the post-industrial Lowell.  He was down a long time after his initial success, especially as his reputation was conflated with a generation with which he disagreed vehemently, struggling to disavow the title ‘King of the Beats.’  His talent though was real and is now more widely recognized.  I don’t dispute the points that Bob Forrant is trying to make, but I think the Globe author was stretching to make his point that Lowell is a failure:  the poverty statistics from 2000 are now nearing a decade old, positive events like the opening the Brew’d Awakening Coffee Shop occurred in the last five years, even Middlesex Street (a photo of empty storefronts on Middlesex Street is in the story) is showing some signs of revitalization and the National Park was surely the saving of the city - not in the same league as stadium and arena projects.  In addition, Manager Bernie Lynch had good answers to many of the criticisms raised, including the fact that ‘experimentation is part of the Lowell model.’  Lowell will no doubt continue to have ups and downs, but there is something here that is real and that persists despite the current fashions in urban renewal.