Dear Ms. Corr-Saegert,
I’m the one who asked you about school grade alignment changes in the middle of the ship sinking, and yes, I’m also from Cleveland (Cleveland Heights) and will be glued to the game tonight.
In your first meeting with DPS staff, you mentioned that a blogger had criticized you for leading with your adoption story and poor powerpoint skills. That would be me.
You weren’t the only candidate who read my blog, doing your homework on DPS, Daniel Schorer not only read it, he accosted me in the hallway to the bathroom that night with an outstretched hand- and introduced himself. I didn’t want to introduce myself to him because of my bias to Mr. Lawrence [1] being IMHO the best candidate to solve our problems, but as I heard my name slipping out of my mouth- he said “I read your blog, and I want to sit down with you if I’m selected.”
I would suggest you do the same. You are about to undertake a monumental challenge, with very little actual institutional knowledge about our city and how it works. There are 2,494 published posts on this blog, and literally 10x that in comments, over the last 10 years. This is the blog that covers Dayton politics, it is well read, by friend and foe. I will give you the unvarnished realities of Dayton and the challenges that you are facing. Many of them will depend on competent communications practices- something DPS has struggled with.
Even in researching the candidates it became really obvious that DPS doesn’t fare well compared to Beavercreek, where the boards first choice worked. Searching for Susan Hayward brought up a competent page on the Beavercreek Schools site [2]– searching for David Lawrence or Greg Roberson and you get a cabinet page, with a link to their email, instead of their credentials [3] (Most people end up on my blog for Lawrence which ranks higher than anything else he’s been published in locally).
As to your presentation, while you may believe your adoption was the defining moment of your life, I don’t think you had anything to do with it. If you think that makes an iota of difference in your ability to turn our district around, I’d like to hear your rationale. You had limited time to sell yourself, and that was time wasted. I’ve had discussions with David Lawrence about how to sell your vision of the changes needed for DPS and I’ve advocated for a Pecha Kucha [4] style presentation- 20 slides, 20 seconds each, that clearly and forcefully layout a plan. This presentation format leaves no room for excess, for ancillary ideas, it’s a globally accepted format to challenge people to change their thinking- and it brings a rigor to presentations. Not only should you have a PK to presentation, you should integrate it into the curriculum, setting a challenge to students with their new Chromebooks – have a district wide competition, to present their ideas with confidence.
You will need to turn to outside sources to work with your rebranding efforts. You will need to find a company that has the tools and smarts to re-position this district as anything other than the worst school district in Ohio. I own one such ad agency. I believe my firm has the tools and skill set to help you do it, but, by no means just take my word for it, do a search of “Dayton Advertising Agencies [5]” and see if The Next Wave comes up in the top of your organic search. Look for the post Agencies That Aren’t The Next Wave — The Next Wave [6] and start reviewing sites. Look for content that teaches and informs, look for discussions of how to do effective marketing, branding, building a brand voice. Narrow it down- interview the creative leaders of the four or five that you think fit your vision of communication strategies. Ask them how much they think it will cost a year for their services, and how much it will cost to effectively change the culture and brand perception of Dayton Public Schools? Ask what their first steps would be? Ask what they’d do if they were you and had no budget? Find out who would be their point person on the account, and what kind of access you’d have? Ask for before and after case studies of changed perceptions for their clients. Then hire someone. Push it past the board as a non-negotiable. Stanic did.
You took a contract for one year, for $140K. We both know that’s a low number for a huge challenge. The one year contract on a two year problem doesn’t exactly show they had the full confidence in you. Hopefully, there is a big performance bonus in it, or at least a healthy renewal built in after the one year training wheels come off.
Stanic rented an apartment downtown. Not that you will get to see the inside of your abode much this first year, but, if you really want to make a statement, buy a house. In the district. I’m going to say in Historic South Park [7], but that’s personal bias. The number one problem we’ve faced for the last 30 years I’ve been in this neighborhood is that young people buy here, but leave as their kids turn 5. You need to meet them, hang out with them, come to our Porch Patio and Deck parties (you missed the one last night), and figure out how to stop that trend.
I’ll also throw in this idea- hire Dan Schorer right now. Put him in charge of hiring 100 new to the district teachers. Have him go out and talk to the community and sell your vision while you sell it internally. Bring his political glad handing skills to the district. He’s already liked by the board, and you’ll need help. Base his compensation partially on minimizing the amount of money the district pays to outsource teachers. Have him work on making sure the teachers we have, come to school.
You have one year to prove yourself. You see yourself as a Michelle Rhee and must be prepared for the same kind of love/hate she’s engendered over her career. Look to your staff carefully and figure out who are the doers and who have ridden in on the “friends and family plan” that has allowed the Peter principle to flourish within the district. Ask hard questions. Those who can, will have answers, those who can’t answer, find their replacements quick. Having rot within the organization just spreads rot.
Last but not least, if we are going to roll out 1-to-1 computers, that cost $200 each, stop treating them and like some kind of Tiffany ring. Give them to the kids, teach responsibility, accountability and pride in ownership. Don’t spend $1500 on locking carts- spend it on proper carrying cases. Don’t give them the keys to the universe- only in school, let them take them home. Set up programs where kids can work to earn money to pay for damage they did, don’t sit and make excuses like “parents won’t pay.” It’s bad enough we stopped letting kids take textbooks home as if they were also works of art- don’t make the same mistake again. The internet, the computer, is the key to personal pursuits of knowledge, give our kids an equal chance. This is the one issue on the Technology Review Committee that has me livid. You can fix it.
And if you want the rest of my ideas on how to help you succeed, you should be able to figure out how to contact me, my LinkedIn [8] is up to date (is yours [9]?).
Mr. Esrati,
For all our differences in past entries, I really enjoyed reading this. As I have mentioned to you previously, I can tell that you are passionate about making Dayton a better place, even if we disagree on the people best equipped to do so. I hope that you are able to use whatever influence you have to have this type of real dialogue with our new superintendent. I think that, should she follow this advice, it would go a long way to smooth Ms. Corr-Saegert’s transition into her new position and to help the community accept her in that role.
I only hope that, should you be able to have this type of conversation with the new superintendent, you encourage her to surround herself with people who can bring a resume of academic success to the table. The community piece is very important, but it’s the academic changes that are necessary if the district is ever going to truly move forward. Please remember and emphasize that. If we want to stop families and teachers from leaving the district, it has to be 100% clear that DPS is dedicated to academic success first and foremost. Athletics are important and are positive character builders for DPS students, but in the big scheme of things, they mean nothing if the students don’t get the quality education and high school diploma that go along with that. Show me a DPS that is making consistently positive changes in AYP, test scores, etc. and I’ll show you a DPS that will be attractive to families and businesses in this area. Nothing will change until the academics do.
If you have the type of influence you suggest, Mr. Esrati, please keep those things in mind and promote the things that are truly going to help our students be successful in life. That’s the only real important thing in this whole equation: DPS graduates who are ready and willing to face the modern job market and become productive citizens and future leaders of this region. That is true success as a school district.
I count 71 comments (some quite lengthy) posted to this blog prior to selecting Rhonda Saegert, 1 comment after she was selected.
Seems that folks are mostly interested in who gets the job, less interested in how the new hire does the job.
(editors note- this comment was held in moderation because it had multiple links, so I had to decide whether to publish it or not. It also contains some unsubstantiated ad hominem attacks, which are not allowed on this blog- from someone who only signed their first name, I’ve redacted those- marking where they are). Please, this isn’t the presidential election, we have standards. Also, if you want to be taken seriously, and chastise someone elses writing skills, you better bone up on your own) Dear Dayton Public School leaders, teachers, parents, students, staff: I was extremely saddened to hear that you hired Rhonda Corr BKA RHONDA CORR SAEGERT. She is a low capacity superintendent – formerly a Chief of Network 10 schl in Chicago. She changed her name when she was fired/laid off due to her low capacity. She was hired as Rhonda Corr-Saegert by her friend Barbara Byrd Bennet (then Chicago Public Schls CEO) & both of them were formerly from Cleveland, OH (Cleveland Public Schools). Both Dr. Bennet and Rhonda Corr- Saegert were a waste to Chicago and did nothing but waste our time and steal LOADS of $$$! Google Bennet – & you will see what she did for Chicago (50 Schls closed under her leadership). Rhonda wouldn’t know good instruction if it hit her on the top of the head and smacked the bleach blond out of her hair! She could care less less about children or instruction. Rhonda is loyal to the $$$$$. Like her friend Barbara Byrd Bennet, Rhonda is creative with getting vendors to give her perks and kickbacks. She is also (ad hominem) a I am telling you this my own personal experience. Any black or Hispanic person should stay far away from Rhonda…she will cause you to need a civil rights attorney! Because of Rhonda, there were several lawsuits ffiled in excess of $500,000 due to Rhonda’s racist comments and biasedness! If aren’t white, you ain’t right for Rhonda! So if DPS has any amount of black or Hispanic children, they are doomed! Rhonda is a complete (ad hominem) and she lives… Read more »
To Victoria, welcome to Esrati.com where you can call me anything you want- but you just can’t call others names or attach labels.
If there are indeed lawsuits- please post links- or documentation- or email the documents to me- [email protected]
The other links, have mostly been referenced in other posts.
You are entitled to your opinions- and can share personal anecdotes- but without signing your full name- they have little sway.
Do you have proof that Rhonda Corr took kickbacks?
You can’t automatically guilt by association because Barbara did
I believe you have a factual mistake- in that she was adopted young- not in foster care for years.
So far, the reviews of her performance in Dayton are mixed, but it is too early in her tenure to tell what her plan is.
Dear David,
Fortunately, I can say anything I want to say bc it’s my opinion – yes everyone has one. Since Rhonda is already hired, Dayton will have to see what she is made of – nothing! No, I won’t leave me name because I had to provide my testimony as part of the lawsuit as did other ppl. But I can give you names of others to contact – ppl who knew exactly what Rhonda was doing. People such as her former ISLs, Erin Nieukirk and Christine Keller can speak to Rhonda’s work or lack thereof and inability to lead. Erin can be reached at [email protected] and Chris is at [email protected]. I could provide the names of other staff members but unfortunately most of them were laid off with Rhonda or they left on their own. In regard to her being in foster care, I am simply reiterating the leadership story that Rhonda expressed to her whole network of principals and APs during her tenure in Chicago before she was fired. If what I mentioned is untrue, the. Once again Rhonda is back up to her old games of lying. Only she knows the truth about her life and quite frankly I could care less if she came from a hole in the ground. Rhonda Corr-SAEGERT is a liar…a cheat and a FRAUD! BEWARE DAYTON, your children are not safe! An effective superintendent would have come in with a plan and made his or her plan evident to all – laid it out in writing! Rhonda HAS BRAIN and therefore has NO PLAN. Rhonda’s plan is to fail Dayton public schools while she makes that $140,00 the. She will be gone – on to the next school district! So again – let me reiterate the warning – BEWARE! Finally, please ask Rhonda why is she now using the name Rhonda Corr?? I know why – does Dayton know why? Just some food for thought while you guys wait for leadership that will never happen. In the future, do your homework Dayton!
Hi Victoria,
Let me also welcome you to esrati.com. This site is very welcoming of those with diverse opinions and ideas. You certainly seem to fit the bill!
I am guessing from the tone and content of your posts on this site that you are an educator with a passion for the well being of children. I, for one, would feel much more comfortable with the current state of our educational system if there were more people like you involved in the system.
Just out of curiosity, I do have a question – are you an English teacher?
Kindest personal regards,B. Jones
Hi Mr. Esrati & B. Jones, No, B. Jones, I am not an English teacher. I saw that David tried to attack my writing with his comment – “bone up on my writing skills”! I have several master’s degrees across content areas and I am a school leader here in Chicago. The most recent degree is from DePaul University in math. But I am also not a leader of 30+ schools like Ms. Corr with the responsibility to prepare reports & documents. Undoubtedly, I am not the only person who criticized Rhonda’s adoption story. The blogger also mentioned that he/she noticed that Rhonda lacks poor skills as evidenced by PowerPoint that Rhonda presented. But you need more evidence – so keep watching as things continue to fall apart for poor Rhonda – rotten to the Corr. As for My writing skills… I am simply writing to a blog from my iPhone and I am quite certain many ppl are not always politically correct when doing so. You don’t have to excuse my brevity – this a blog so if I wrote “me” you know that I meant “my”. This is the age of technology and spellcheck does exist but I don’t have time for that on a commentary. If my comments are being analyzed for grammatical errors and political correctness then clearly this is not a blog where ppl can openly discuss their opinions – which essentially means this is NOT a true commentary that upholds the first amendment – freedom of speech/expression without judgement. (Please know that I am not going to quote the whole 1st Amendment) because I don’t want to be politically correct – not for a bunch of ppl that I don’t know and could care less about. Consequently, you might see that I have used lots of shorthand and non traditional vocabulary. This is called “coat switching” in my world. I write for the audience. As it stands, I have multiple advanced degrees and I do not need anyone to validate my writing ability. I am writing for the people who do not support the… Read more »
Victoria- a link to the lawsuits would have been just fine.
You have a link, clown – ask Rhonda! Do your own homework!
Good luck Dayton. The new hyphenated name and double speak don’t impress; talking friends and family plan? How do you think most of these incompetent retreads get hired?
Newsbreak…….she now makes 180k, has a contract extension, and what has she done so far?