Warning: If you are a student or a minor, please leave this blog now.
This Blog Has Been Publishing News on the RCS Community Almost Non-Stop Since About March 29; As of Today We Have More than 11,000 Readers! We Notify Almost Every School Official in the Albany-Schenectady-Schoharie BOCES, officials of the NYS Department of Education, and Others, who Have A Need to Know.
Bailey, Is that You?
Can Someone Please Explain to Me How the Principal of RCS High School, Mr Brian Bailey, Can Write that He “Been Focused on the Teaching and Learning Within My Building and Have not Accessed This Blog.”
Some of our readers may have missed the main point: Bailey should not have to access this blog to know what’s going on–that is, if he’s interested–in his school, district, and community. On the other hand, he might simply be playing a game, he’s a teacher after all, and doesn’t want to s–t where he eats. He’s a member of the teachers association, the teachers union, and he works with the very people he’d be investigating. “Ignorant” he may really be–or just playing ignorant–but stupid he’s not. Right?
RCS high school, Bailey’s school, is a hotbed of the problems we’ve been discussing, his seniors, under the influence of their teachers, authored disgraceful comments, the Superintendent of Schools was notified (didn’t she even mention it to Baily?!?), the RCS Board of Education was notified (didn’t the teachers on the board recognize the seriousness of some of these issues?), his teachers are implicated in improper behavior. What in hell is Bailey doing all this time? Sure, he’s “focused on the teaching and the learning” but Where? on Uranus?
What is RCS Superintendant Elizabeth Smith doing when she receives notifications of possible misconduct, of teacher’s possible involvement in retaliation against students? Reports of bullying? Well, she’s playing in the sand, too!
Superintendent Elizabeth Smith Focusing on Problems in the RCS Central School District.
Almost everyone in the RCS district must be talking about this blog; we know that the teachers are discussing it…the kids are bringing the conversations home to their parents. By the way: Isn’t that what the teachers lounge is for? Are they that idiotic that they discuss everything in the corridors? They’re worse than the kids!
We are not going to be awarding the coveted DumbAss Award this week because this is an occasion for a truly special award, which we would like to confer on none other than Mr Brian Bailey, principal of RCS high school, for his level of knowledge and awareness of what’s going on in his school and his community. Here’s to you, Bailey!
The Coveted Head-up-Yer-Butt Award goes to Principal Brian Bailey.
Background: A reader/contributor contacted Bailey (principal of RCS high school) and Pam Black (principal of RCS middle school) asking:
“I would like to inquire what the RCS senior high school administration is undertaking in response to the allegations made on the Smalbany blog relating to (1) student misconduct in comments made on the blog, (2) the statement made by one student commentor that her teachers were involved in the comments, (3) the very serious allegation of teacher involvement in retaliatory bully gangs at the RCS middle and high schools.”
The Rule of Thumb at RCS
| Special Notice: We make every effort to be truthful, complete, fair, and balanced on this blog; therefore, if you see anything that you know to be false or incorrect, or if you have additional information to clarify any issue, please let us know by e-mailing your information or by leaving a comment. It’s very important to us that we don’t fall into the same category as those whom this blog is intended to expose. Thank you very much in advance for your cooperation and assistance! |
Albany NY a.k.a. Smalbany 
Micah J
May 7, 2012 at 9:22 pm
Well to answer your question on the mentioning of “hateful” it is only from what I have heard from relatives who live in both Ravena and the South Bethlehem area. Now this is your blog so I understand your right to post whatever you choose, I do feel personally that some of the wording you use is quite harsh though. I have heard this blog mentioned by friends and family several times and it often appears under a not so positive light for all it’s allegations. It seems slightly too radical put such small figures as teachers under intense scrutinization and it often comes off as mud slinging. If I may add my two cents I would say that a less dramatic presentation of your findings might garner to a larger fan base, and maybe even try and post positives of the Smalbany community, a ‘you catch more flies with honey’ approach? As for Mr. Bailey I have heard nothing but positives about him and what he does for the school/students from those who have had the chance to meet him which makes me feel that he is actually quite occupied with the school and those who attend it. I don’t see enough evidence on either side to make a truly solid argument, but as a ‘glass half full’ person I’d like to reserve my faith in him rather than immediately write him off without firsthand knowledge of his true character.
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Fides qua Creditur
May 8, 2012 at 7:30 am
Thank you again, Micah, for your comment and opinion.
I think you need to revise your thinking a bit. First of all, we have more than 11,000 readers, if what you say is even close to being true, the majority of those readers are seeking out and returning to a source of information with which they don’t agree, are at odds, or don’t like. It simply doesn’t make sense. Do you look for and buy a book you don’t want to read?
What I will grant you is that a minority of those 11,000+ readers are simply coming to the blog out of curiosity, because they want to see what the newest scandal is, or because they think they may have been mentioned and want to see what it is.
Judging by the e-mails, the comments, the polls most of the 11,000+ agree and want to assure themselves that their interests are finally being represented.
I find that the emotions a particular text and style evoke are more in the reader than in the writer. We have pleasure reading something we agree with even if the words and style are vituperative and volatile; some people would read the Beatitudes or the Quran as hateful; depends on whether you are reading words or meaning; whether you are reading with an open mind or whether you need to be locking in the comfort false security of status quo. Think about that.
I take issue with your characterization of teachers as “small people.” If you are referring to the minds and worlds of a regrettably large number of public employees called “teachers,” Yes! they are indeed small. But if you are referring to the effects of those people called “teachers,” “small” is definitely not an appropriate word. They wield tremendous power in that they have privileged access to the young, to highly sensitive, impressionable minds in highly formative years, in years when self and identity are in critical developmental phases, in years when paradigms and role models are incorporated into one’s own development. Awesome good but terrible damage can result if the wrong people with the wrong mores are put into such positions. No, Micah, these are no small people and they know it. All you have to do is look beneath the surface and what you’ll find under the shine is quite human, all too human. Think about what YOU mean when you call them “small figures” and reflect on your school days…if you can remember, what were teachers for you as a child, as a teenager?
You can prevail in a conflict by diplomacy or by shock and awe; you can rehabilitate a deviant by reasoning or by boot camp. Depends largely on how willing the person or group is to change and how ingrained the undesirable behavior is. In a group with too much special interest and too much too lose, diplomacy and reasoning will not work; they simply have what they have and will keep it at all costs, especially if it promises to bring them more of what they want and desire. They think they have the honey and they don’t want to give it up or share it; it’s attracting more bees that will make them more honey. Get it? Sometimes you wake up to birds singing, sometimes you really need a loud alarm. Depends on how exhausted you are. The RCS community is very exhausted.
If you want to hear positives, you hang out with people who say what you like hearing. That’s only natural. But if you want to hear what’s going on really, you have to hear what the other side is saying. I frequently think of the French or British aristocracy and how much they knew/know about their world and how much they appreciated the plight of the people. Read Dickens.
Thanks again for your comment.
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Micah J
May 7, 2012 at 7:38 pm
I feel like Mr. Bailey seems more concerned with remaining proffesional when the budget is so close. He probably doesn’t want to draw attention to what a majority of people see as a hateful and quite one sided blog. As an administrator he is being very smart in what he’s doing by not getting sucked into such heated debates over numerous allegations when the important issue of the budget is so close.
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Fides qua Creditur
May 7, 2012 at 8:22 pm
Micah, whereas I appreciate your thoughts and your speculation what Bailey might or might not consider remaining “professional”–but excuse me, I am a professional, and not just adjectivally–but doesn’t it occur to you that the serious issues of student misconduct, intimidation, harassment, bullying have little or nothing to do with whether or not a budget vote immanent but rather with doing his bloody job! To hell with the budget when student welfare is in question. Wouldn’t it be the best possible promotion of professionalism to have responded, “Yes, sir. We at RCS take such allegations very seriously and believe me, I am aware of most of what goes on in my building, and believe me, when it concerns our students, I’m right on top of it.” Rather than that stupid wishy-washy “I’m focused,” line? Damn it! He’s principal! He wears the crown! If he can’t talk the talk and walk the walk, off with his head!
But back to your comment: I’m aslo very curious why you take the opportunity to mention that “a majority of people see as a hateful and one sided blog,” because I don’t think that’s really true. And why “hateful”?” Seems like a really bad choice of words. Hateful because it’s calling the pervs and the perps out? Hateful because it represents expressed concerns of residents? Hateful because it draws attention to the irregularities, the questionable ethics, the immorality of people parading around as if they were saints? Or, what about those who speak with forked tongues? For the kids now give me a raise? The deceit? Perhaps it’s hateful to those who are candidates for the HUYB award or who go through life with their heads buried in the sand but for those of us who live by the light of day? Hateful it’s not. It’s TRUTH!
And it’s fair play, because, though I may disagree with you and other commentors on this blog, you still get published! It’s an open forum, not our soapbox. You get to say what you have on your mind and I/we or someone responds. That’s an exchange, maybe even debate and it’s the way it should be. Why haven’t they responded to the allegations? Do you have a theory on that one?
Are you so blind to have missed on every post the conspicuous request that if something is incorrect or false that we ask for correction? If it’s so one-sided, why has no one come forward to correct it? By correction I mean providing facts, not opinions and hystrionics, that show that what we have reported is inaccurate or wrong. No one.
The allegations and the budget are so far removed from each other they are in different universes, my friend, so don’t confuse the two.
My personal take on Mr Bailey’s response is that he’s not smart, he’s ignorant and to have a man in his position to be ignorant is very, very dangerous to those over whom he wields any authority or power. I’m sorry but you and I are going to have to agree to disagree on this one!
BTW, are you a student? Your arguments make the impression that you might be. Please correct me if I’m getting the wrong impression that you are Timothy, a student at RCS high school.
Peace!
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