Open Letter to North Carolina High School Athletic Association -You’re Not in it For the Kids

I sent this letter this past week to every member of the Board of Directors for the NCHSAA. It concerns events that occurred last weekend during the 4A softball state championship series.  I never received an answer or an acknowledgment. It is a long letter, but it does not cover all that happened. Nor does … Continue reading Open Letter to North Carolina High School Athletic Association -You’re Not in it For the Kids

My One-Sided Pen Pal Relationship With Sen. Jerry Tillman – Or Why I Am Sending An Old Letter With More Love

What follows is an open letter to Sen. Jerry Tillman most of which I plagiarized from a letter I wrote to him in the summer of 2015. Ironically, actually no, it still holds truth. Nothing has changed. So I am revising it with a little more info. And resending. What I have done is edit … Continue reading My One-Sided Pen Pal Relationship With Sen. Jerry Tillman – Or Why I Am Sending An Old Letter With More Love

About That NC Teacher Working Conditions Survey – The Glaring Disconnect Between the NCGA and Reality

The latest results from the North Carolina Teacher Working Conditions Survey do more than demonstrate the disconnect between those who work in schools and those who want to re-form schools; they display that what really drives the success of a school are the people - from the students to the teachers to the administration to … Continue reading About That NC Teacher Working Conditions Survey – The Glaring Disconnect Between the NCGA and Reality

Let Us Praise Great Coaches

Let us praise great high school coaches. If you teach long enough in the public schools, you will be fortunate enough to come across some great individuals who coach sports teams all the while teaching these very players lessons of life and success even in the wake of defeat. And I want to praise great … Continue reading Let Us Praise Great Coaches

Clyde Edgerton and the Hubris of New Hanover

A simple google search for the definition of a great word: hubris. hu·bris - ˈ(h)yo͞obrəs/ - noun excessive pride or self-confidence. (in Greek tragedy) excessive pride toward or defiance of the gods, leading to nemesis. I am not from North Carolina, but having lived here half my life, married a native tarheel, and raised my … Continue reading Clyde Edgerton and the Hubris of New Hanover

Tommy Boy and Charlotte’s Web -I Can Voucher That This Week Was One Negative Week

Much happened. Read again or for the first time. https://caffeinatedrage.com/2016/05/29/3-negatives-do-not-make-a-positive-senators-bergers-hiding-in-the-details/ https://caffeinatedrage.com/2016/05/30/shame-on-apodaca-and-kraweic-the-farce-of-the-access-to-affordable-college-education-act/ https://caffeinatedrage.com/2016/05/31/a-picture-is-worth-a-thousand-syllables-senate-budget-press-conference-on-teacher-pay/ https://caffeinatedrage.com/2016/06/01/no-voucher-to-vouch-for-the-use-of-vouchers-another-attack-on-public-schools/ https://caffeinatedrage.com/2016/06/02/dammit-charlotte-you-made-people-treat-sen-apodaca-poorly-the-conspiracy-theory-of-a-slippery-slope/ https://caffeinatedrage.com/2016/06/03/how-chris-farley-and-tommy-boy-accurately-explain-rep-brockmans-comments-about-teachers-and-asd/  

How Chris Farley and Tommy Boy Accurately Explain Rep. Brockman’s Comments About Teachers and ASD

I miss Chris Farley. His stint on Saturday Night Live is still memorable. There’s that opening number with Patrick Swayze where he and Swayze were competing for a spot in the Chioppendale dancers. Then there’s Matt Foley, a motivational speaker who lives “in a van down by the river.” But my favorite Chris Farley performance … Continue reading How Chris Farley and Tommy Boy Accurately Explain Rep. Brockman’s Comments About Teachers and ASD

Dammit Charlotte! You Made People Treat Sen. Apodaca Poorly – The Conspiracy Theory of a Slippery Slope

“I’ve never tried to help people in my life and be treated so poorly.” – Sen. Tom Apodaca, June 1st, 2016 in reference to SB 837. And it is all the fault of Charlotte, NC. Seriously. The Slip-n-Slide, slippery slope logic used in the past by Sen. Apodaca makes this easy to explain. Charlotte passes … Continue reading Dammit Charlotte! You Made People Treat Sen. Apodaca Poorly – The Conspiracy Theory of a Slippery Slope

No Voucher to Vouch for the Use of Vouchers – Another Attack on Public Schools

Irony makes this world go ‘round and North Carolina is providing plenty of it in the form of vouchers, or as we call them in North Carolina, Opportunity Grants. The following definitions for the word “voucher” come from the online Merriam-Webster Dictionary (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/voucher): 1:  an act of vouching 2a :  a piece of supporting evidence :  proof b :  a … Continue reading No Voucher to Vouch for the Use of Vouchers – Another Attack on Public Schools

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Syllables – Senate Budget Press Conference on Teacher Pay

  Alex Granados of EdNC.org did a nice job of reporting on the Senate press conference on teacher pay proposal on May 26th (https://www.ednc.org/2016/05/26/senate-unveils-teacher-salary-pay-plan/). If you go to the actual story on EdNC’s website, there is a video of the press conference. In it you will see who is present. Of course, Sen. Phil Berger … Continue reading A Picture is Worth a Thousand Syllables – Senate Budget Press Conference on Teacher Pay