The REASON Wallis got the boot [New Saff Warning on OP 6/1/2017]

52,528 Views | 140 Replies | Last: 5 yr ago by carpe vinum
QuitTrippin
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Read and listen.

http://www.kbtx.com/content/news/Audio-recording-obtained-by-KBTX-reveals-Dr-Wallis-was-forced-to-resign-from-BISD-408618895.html

[Posters can discuss what is publicly available. Rumors will be removed and the poster will have their posting ability suspended. There is the warning. We are not going to allow this to get derailed into a thread about moderation. -Staff]

[Anyone that posts unsubstantiated rumors on this thread will get a 30 day ban. Minimum. There is the warning. Don't bother emailing if you get banned for ignoring it. -Staff]
techno-ag
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
So... he was looking for another job and they went ahead and showed him the door.
TexasAggie_02
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
I'm guessing he was looking for other jobs to get himself out of the mess he created
Carnwellag2
How long do you want to ignore this user?
That is a stupid reason to fire someone. Wonder if he has a case of wrongful termination
kraut
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
Why would anyone on the school board be shocked that a hired gun would be looking around for his next gig? Why would they take it that personally?

It doesn't make sense that all this went down as it did because Wallis didn't show loyalty by applying for other jobs.
JM13
How long do you want to ignore this user?
It's half the story, and he has zero case for wrongful termination
cslifer
How long do you want to ignore this user?
All we know for sure is he was looking for other jobs, everything else is rumors. Not illegal but a pretty crappy reason to fire someone.
Edit: I own property in both cities, this just solidifies why my kids will never go to BISD.
DeckMe80
How long do you want to ignore this user?
JM13 said:

It's half the story, and he has zero case for wrongful termination
Possibly less than half the story.
halibut sinclair
How long do you want to ignore this user?
cslifer said:


Edit: I own property in both cities, this just solidifies why my kids will never go to BISD.


The superintendent looking for another job is why your kids will never go to BISD?
AggiePirate
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
halibut sinclair said:

cslifer said:


Edit: I own property in both cities, this just solidifies why my kids will never go to BISD.


The superintendent looking for another job is why your kids will never go to BISD?
Does snootiness need a valid reason these days? Edit: Heads up, incoming fart sniff.
cslifer
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Is that a really question or do you deliberately try to be obtuse? The behavior of the school board is why I want nothing to do with BISD.
AggiePirate
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
Scandal or not. There were many other things that made BISD a harsh district not only for teachers but more recently for students. I am glad that the transition happened, for whatever reason it did. Hopefully we can begin to fix the issues that we face in this district and start giving teachers more respect and the support that they deserve.
bradleyk
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AggiePirate,

When you say more support, what specific support is that? I have heard this from a few people amd am trying to understand if this is moral support, like the pat on the back support, or is this support by means of having people help new teachers get better, or support in training, etc? I know that Wallis and Rocka were both pretty intense toward educators at times, not that I agree or disagree since I don't know those specific circumstances, but I do agree that when morale is down, production goes down and this could be part of the explanation in test scores. What I am trying to determine is whether there is still an issue over teachers losing their teaming periods a few years ago.

Personally, I think there are a lot of teachers that need support by means of assistance to do their jobs better, learn some better teaching methods, etc. I also agree that teachers are loaded up with no time to plan and Admin is loaded up with duties as well and lastly, that student to teacher ratios are high. Problem is that this requires hiring more staff and there is not enough money for that. CSISD has more staff overall and a lower classroom ratio, but they also receive more money per student in funding. I continue to go back to a broken school finance system that doesn't support schools equally. BISD expenses for Admin are well below the average, but we have expenses in other categories that CSISD does not have. We have higher transportation usage and a more rural district. Our transportation expenditures are considerably higher than average. I don't mind the way Wallis was myself. Sometimes examples have to be set in business to get the necessary production. He was leading a $135M a year business... the business of teaching. He needed to operate it as such.

I disapprove of Wunneburgers actions on the recording based on only having that as evidence. I know Stazny and Wunneburger did not want Wallis here from the beginning. Stazny's name was even mentioned in the recording. There are instances in the district where certain board members were trying to get complaints against Wallis to oust him. Wallis was known prior to coming to BISD to not be a puppet and that's what our Board has wanted for a long time... the controlled Smith and Cargill to extremes for whatever agenda they have.

It is time for a change at the Board and I think Moore can get that done in time. I think it is possible that Wunneburger violated the Boards Code of Conduct and the States Code of Ethics with this. They fought real hard to not let the audio recording out and even harder with thsee other documents that are under AG review and ruling.

This will be interesting but the public deserves transparency, because this is the same board that will be hiring the next Superintendent and we need to know that this board is qualified, or unqualified to make that decision.
AggiePirate
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
Support, in the way of allowing time for educators to meet the constant growing list of tasks that are assigned to them. Most teachers at least at the elementary level would have to work 60-70 hour weeks just to get everything done that was asked and even then would likely not have addressed everything. That combined with constant walk-troughs which can negatively affect their performance rating if they do not have complete control of their ever growing number of students. Teachers simply do not have the time it takes to meet the demands placed on them and are working under constantly growing stress. Worse off is that they do not have anyone to talk to that is likely to care as Administration also has huge demands and pressure being placed on them.

I understand that the profession of teaching involves time outside of regular school hours and that any good teacher will spend some weekends at school but every week of the year and then working from home late into the night when not up on campus is a bit much. This causes intense burnout and severely low morale. There is a reason that BISD has way more turnover than CSISD and it is not only for first year teachers. You will see many extremely talented veteran teachers finally throw in the towel because of the current environment or see them make the switch across town to the other district.

There need to be more teachers. If there is not money for more teachers then the quality of teaching goes down simply because people are overworked. Add in the extra demands that are placed from having the current Administration at the top and it is a downright dreadful experience where its no longer about educating children but about filling out bureaucratic paperwork. There is always more and more being passed down to be added onto their to do and be accountable for list and there is just no way to keep up. There have been threads in the past about this and there are always those that chime in that they don't have any of these issues and I am happy for those people, but seriously feel for those less fortunate who might read this and identify, a few of which I happen to know.

There is a way to challenge teachers to give the best education possible and there is another way to micromanage and overwork them until they can't take it anymore. Bryan ISD could learn a lot from Leander ISD (one example of where I have seen this done correctly).

Believe it or not, thats the way it looks from here, being the husband of a BISD teacher.
Bearkat272
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Hi Bradleyk,

I would like to speak to the support question if you are really interested. Bryan has unrealistic expectations on what one person can accomplish in a classroom, in a day, in a week, in a school year. I can only speak at the elementary level. I am not sure how things are running at the secondary campuses. Instead of putting proper reading and GT pull out support in place they choose to shove it all right back into the classroom while raising expectations at the same time. The finances you mentioned are real, but elementary campuses in Bryan all employ full time Instructional coaches who DO NOT work with students and are highly qualified to do so. In my opinion, they could find existing resources to help at minimum. The expectations that are told to the teachers are sometimes physically impossible so they have to immediately figure out how to fake it or evade being watched. Its not realistic for the same human being to pull several sets of small groups AND do lengthy verbal reading testing at the EXACT same time, but this is one example of a real situation at a real campus in Bryan. Please also remember that to take a highly disruptive student out of your classroom costs time and money and paperwork. So teachers are often expected to do all of this with a furniture throwing, cursing child that is shoved right back at them if they ask for any assistance so they can actually do their job.

That is just one component of a very complex scenario. There is a lot of pressure felt on everyone from the tip top of the triangle all the way down. Teachers get the heat, because admins get it because ICs get the heat for things to be a certain way. Teachers are often told when they present an impossible scenario to their superiors "Im sorry but that is the expectation". The Bryan campus Im familiar with takes up an illegal amount of a teachers lunch, every conference period and often after school meetings until 5, leaving the rest of their lesson planning, grading, prepping, planning, cleaning jobs to the night time. PLEASE also remember that at most elementary campuses teachers are teaching up to 5 subjects a day.

This all breeds burn out. There is no one to trust, no where to turn. We want these teachers to feel competent, confident, and free to ask for support or even advice. Every child is different and their needs are different. It is crucial to foster an environment of collaboration. It is also important that teachers have a some what balanced life in order to function with 23 children every day.

Bryan likes to raise the stakes and put no plan in place to get to those goals, again putting pressure on the classroom teacher. IMO you cant run a district with those methods. You cant be a bully and push everyone around until they somehow magically clone themselves over 4 times to take care of business. It is human nature to break down at some point.

My opinions about Bryan were formed first hand. I have no desire to squabble with someone about it that has never run a classroom in that district. Im simply putting this out there so that people will think twice when they think the teachers are just whiny. IMO we need a plan for a more collaborative working environment to improve quality. God Bless those men and women out there working their tail ends off to make it happen everyday. Bryan deserves better.
bradleyk
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Thank you both for the comments. Most know, from my prior posts on BISD matters, that I am very invloved on high level matters that deal with taxation representation. I examine the BISD budget and autited review every year against our neighboring district and against state averages posted by TEA. I truly still believe this is a funding problem at the core. Woth the proper amount of funding, some of the roles could be filled that are lacking. I don't disagree with any of your comments because it is the common theme, but it was before Wallis as well. The state mandated testing has imposed a lot of pressure on districts. Our demographics impose a set of pressures as well. Our board is filled with A&M professors and educators, except 2. I see that our board needs some equal representation of careers from business and education. I can tell you, from leading large businesses, that having operations (education) minded, business minded and legal representation can make the world of difference in that board. Just because there are professors on there does not mean they understand the school system. I just said the other day that Amy Drozd is one of the best CFOs anyone could get. I would hire her in a heartbeat for my company. I don't know that they look to her enough for thoughts.

In the end, I agree that there needs to be less abrasive actions by admin, there needs to be creative thinking on how to allow for more revenue to be put toward the classroom, and way more community input. The board needs to listen and not think they know everything that is best. Has the district considered a bond for LNG buses and would those costs reduce annual transportation costs? Can we start leanine away from neighborhood schools (300-350 students) and go to Bonham size schools of 750-800. This would help with some positions and allow for some money to be directed to education. When I was on the Facilities Planning Committee, this was one thing I shared and it never went anywhere, because the public likes the neighborhood schools, but the public doesn't realize the strains you have mentioned and how it affects quality of education.

We need to be in our local representative's ear, especially as we go into a new legislative session. We need them to work for us and our district... if not we need to remember it during election season. These children are our leaders of tomorrow and we have an obligation, a motivation, to want and need to assist this. The state absolutely needs to increase the funding cap back toward the $1.50... I say $1.25-1.29 would be appropriate. That funding alone would help all Texas schools... which many have these same problems.. not all, but many do.
AggiePirate
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
Although resources may have been a challenge before I am sure many folks would agree that the pressure on educators became much worse under him. Thanks for your reply and for asking the question.
Roc96
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
Bearkat is right on. Teachers can't realize their potential in many schools due to unrealistic demands. Case in point: I have a teacher friend who had many of the limitations Bearkat mentioned, was a young teacher at an elementary in Bryan, and was non-renewed. She got a job in Navasota (also a very challenging district) on the rebound, and two years later was elementary teacher of the year in that district. She was allowed to "teach" finally, and not play the role of the teacher-bot. She got a manageable workload with support from her admin. Hers is a common situation, and BISD must find a way to develop teachers.

I hope that can be done in the near future.
AggiePirate
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
I'll just leave this here:

http://www.kbtx.com/content/news/BISD-board-president-hints-there-may-be-more-to-the-Wallis-story--408795645.html

TexasAggie_02
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
AggiePirate said:

I'll just leave this here:

http://www.kbtx.com/content/news/BISD-board-president-hints-there-may-be-more-to-the-Wallis-story--408795645.html




Holy pop up ads Batman. Jeez kbtx, when you put a pop up over the entire article with a countdown where I can't close it, I say 'eff it' and just close the whole tab. I'm not going to even bother to read the article after that.
JaxDad
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
I feel one of the easiest ways BISD can reduce class size is to give the Instructional Coaches 3 or 4 classes. And not just the PreAP and easier classes. They are supposed to be experienced and "better" that the average teacher so why not give them them more challenging kids? They can spend the other half of their day tracking data, planning, etc.
Tailgate88
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
TexasAggie_02 said:

AggiePirate said:

I'll just leave this here:

http://www.kbtx.com/content/news/BISD-board-president-hints-there-may-be-more-to-the-Wallis-story--408795645.html




Holy pop up ads Batman. Jeez kbtx, when you put a pop up over the entire article with a countdown where I can't close it, I say 'eff it' and just close the whole tab. I'm not going to even bother to read the article after that.


Here's the important part:

Quote:

This is the statement from Bryan ISD Board President Trey Moore:

"The Attorney General's opinion allowing the release of some information pertaining to the separation of Dr. Tommy Wallis from Bryan ISD is encouraging. The public has a strong desire and a right to know how their district is governed and their funds are spent. In the fullness of time, the Attorney General may allow additional information to be disclosed that would present a much more complete picture as to the causes for that separation beyond the very limited scope of what has been released today."
Justin2010
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG

Quote:

Wunneburger: For a long time, mine has been John 8:32. Do you know it?
Wallis: No.
Wunneburger: I've never heard anybody else say it.
Wallis: What is it?
Wunneburger: We shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.
Wallis: True. So what's the truth?
---
For the next five minutes, Wallis was criticized for what is called a betrayal of trust after learning Wallis had been caught applying for up 17 different jobs. Wallis sounds surprised to learn this.
I know this is only part of the conversation. But it seems pretty inappropriate to me to quote scripture almost as a preamble to criticizing and chewing somebody out.

How about "love your enemies"? Or "Do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart."

Seems like if you consider yourself a Christian, and you have the presence of mind to quote scripture as a start to a conversation, that being a little more diplomatic and less "Godfather-ish" may be a good idea.

Just my opinion.
DeckMe80
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AggiePirate said:

I'll just leave this here:

http://www.kbtx.com/content/news/BISD-board-president-hints-there-may-be-more-to-the-Wallis-story--408795645.html


After reading Trey Moore's statement, I will amend my earlier post. The audio recording is definitely less than half the story.
4thGenerationAgs
How long do you want to ignore this user?
http://www.fortbendisd.com/Page/25967

Interesting temporary gig
medic1969p
How long do you want to ignore this user?
4thGenerationAgs said:

http://www.fortbendisd.com/Page/25967

Interesting temporary gig


Interesting??? Who cares?
EliteElectric
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Justin2010 said:


Quote:

Wunneburger: For a long time, mine has been John 8:32. Do you know it?
Wallis: No.
Wunneburger: I've never heard anybody else say it.
Wallis: What is it?
Wunneburger: We shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.
Wallis: True. So what's the truth?
---
For the next five minutes, Wallis was criticized for what is called a betrayal of trust after learning Wallis had been caught applying for up 17 different jobs. Wallis sounds surprised to learn this.

"The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children"

~~Jules Winnfield~~
Rapier108
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Quote:

Former Bryan schools superintendent Tommy Wallis has obtained a court order to halt the public release of documents related to his departure, school officials said Friday afternoon.

Trey Moore, president of the Bryan school board, said the district is "eager" to release more information about Wallis' rocky departure from the district.

Wallis abruptly resigned from his post in October, and gave no reason for his departure.

Following the resignation, The Eagle filed requests for information related to Wallis' leaving under the Texas Public Information Act. Bryan school officials sent some documents to the Texas Attorney General's office for guidance on what they could release.

http://www.theeagle.com/news/local/former-bryan-isd-superintendent-tommy-wallis-obtains-court-order-to/article_0f6bb05a-d9cc-11e6-a6f7-0b92f3830535.html
pants
How long do you want to ignore this user?
In response to the teachers posting about too many tasks and not enough support above, I totally agree.

Teachers are given a constantly growing list of small tasks that all help students succeed. The problem is not what they're being asked to do, but the sheer number of things on the list. It becomes a game of "I'm going to have to skip something, so what would you prefer I skip?"

Pair the overwhelming and legally binding list of tasks with a culture problem, and you get burnout. A professional should be able to approach his/her boss with concerns of being overwhelmed or the inefficiency of parent calls (which by the way are thrice redundant because of report cards, online grades, and parents who call the school) without fear of being labeled lazy. A professional should be trusted to do his/her job without having to document every detail for fear of lawsuits.

A professional who feels chronically overworked, underpaid, and untrusted is bound to quit eventually.
AG @ HEART
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AggiePirate said:

Support, in the way of allowing time for educators to meet the constant growing list of tasks that are assigned to them. Most teachers at least at the elementary level would have to work 60-70 hour weeks just to get everything done that was asked and even then would likely not have addressed everything. That combined with constant walk-troughs which can negatively affect their performance rating if they do not have complete control of their ever growing number of students. Teachers simply do not have the time it takes to meet the demands placed on them and are working under constantly growing stress. Worse off is that they do not have anyone to talk to that is likely to care as Administration also has huge demands and pressure being placed on them.

I understand that the profession of teaching involves time outside of regular school hours and that any good teacher will spend some weekends at school but every week of the year and then working from home late into the night when not up on campus is a bit much. This causes intense burnout and severely low morale. There is a reason that BISD has way more turnover than CSISD and it is not only for first year teachers. You will see many extremely talented veteran teachers finally throw in the towel because of the current environment or see them make the switch across town to the other district.

There need to be more teachers. If there is not money for more teachers then the quality of teaching goes down simply because people are overworked. Add in the extra demands that are placed from having the current Administration at the top and it is a downright dreadful experience where its no longer about educating children but about filling out bureaucratic paperwork. There is always more and more being passed down to be added onto their to do and be accountable for list and there is just no way to keep up. There have been threads in the past about this and there are always those that chime in that they don't have any of these issues and I am happy for those people, but seriously feel for those less fortunate who might read this and identify, a few of which I happen to know.

There is a way to challenge teachers to give the best education possible and there is another way to micromanage and overwork them until they can't take it anymore. Bryan ISD could learn a lot from Leander ISD (one example of where I have seen this done correctly).

Believe it or not, thats the way it looks from here, being the husband of a BISD teacher.


Also a husband of a BISD elementary teacher and ditto
turfman80
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
http://www.kbtx.com/content/news/Expensive-car-rental-by-former-superintendent-led-to-changes-inside-BISD-414142013.html


[6/1/2017] warning in effect as of this edit. -Staff]
turfman80
How long do you want to ignore this user?
AG
http://www.kbtx.com/content/news/Exclusive-Report-details-14-alleged-ethical-violations-by-Tommy-Wallis-at-BISD-428271803.html

Let the story speak for itself. As a note, only one board member, David Stasny, voted against the $83,000 payout to Wallis on his exit. Let the other board members face qualified opponents in their upcoming elections. To not take a stand against the obvious unethical actions of Wallis shows that they cannot be trusted to lead Bryan ISD.
happyinBCS
How long do you want to ignore this user?
So very sad, the folks that are charged with protecting our kids and grandkids are as much at fault as he is
nashvilleaggie11
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Absolutely infuriating. Shameful.
Love Gun
How long do you want to ignore this user?
Mistress of the deceased principal speaks out about their affair. Still doesn't vindicate Wallis.

http://m.kjas.com/mobile/news/local_news/article_d64d20d4-5080-11e7-b850-2727721a89a7.html
 
×
subscribe Verify your student status
See Subscription Benefits
Trial only available to users who have never subscribed or participated in a previous trial.