Are YOUR kids going to Corporate School?
My daughter's school sends a monthly newsletter home through the mail. It's usually filled with typos (especially the Principal's Update) and news only a PTA Chair-person could love. But at the bottom of this month's edition (I swear to God!) I found the following:
. . . a mission statement. Hoo-boy.
Do you ever get that feeling, deep in the pit of your stomach, that sends alarm bells ringing through your soul? You know the one I mean. Like when you just hit the gas pedal instead of the break-- and, for some reason your brain can't immediately grasp, everything is suddenly going SO wrong!
What I'd like to know is exactly when my daughter enrolled in a corporate school? Did she (or I) have a choice in this? Or, more to the point, When did the corporations take over?
Did I miss that memo? No. . .
Okay. I've been accused of being paranoid for a long time. So long, in fact, that I acknowledge some portion of it. I think it's one of the side-effects of an active imagination.
Be that as it may, I'd like to know what PIN HEAD (my guess is Mr. PinHead O'Brien, probably -- and SO not a relation! -- otherwise known as the principal or, in my mind, their 'fearless leader' who, based on our conversations, can't seem to even remember being a teenager-- which means he sprang from a pod) decided it was acceptable to adopt corporate policies within any school, never mind mine! And why didn't they discuss this in their stupid newsletter.
This is not a new war-- so not! When my son was in the 8th grade, I urged him to begin an underground newpaper, telling the truth about what happens at that school. He refused. I told him I'd help him. (This was before blogs when you had to learn HTML in order to have a website.) Well, he's in college now and, as the song says, the beat goes on. . . and kids keep getting the losing end of that stick.
What really amazes me is that the school sees NO CONNECTION between the teen problems the school is rife with-- and their stupid corporate policies.
It's 1984 meets The Moral Majority at this school, believe me. Ever see the movie Bang! Bang! You're Dead!? Well, my kids didn't need to see it-- they live it. My son was the main character-- or nearly. The only thing missing is the Hollywood ending. . . pity. Or, maybe they do need to see it-- because they need to see there is a way out of this. . . hell. I watched it because, when both my kids agree that a movie is great, I want to know what the fuss is about. Well, after viewing it, I wanted to buy a copy and deliver it to Mr. O'Brien-- with the message "here's a look in the mirror."
In case you don't know who the moral majority really is (arrogant name, if ever there was one), they are a SMALL Group of fanatics from the midwest that believe they represent the average American. . . and they want to, essentially, shove their "values" down everyone else's throats. Specifically, they want to ban all rock 'n roll, smoking, drinking, sex altogether, most movies above a G-rating and, generally, anything that people enjoy. Let me put it this way: The moral majority, make the Jehovah's Witnesses look like amateurs.
They rose to prominence in the mid-80's, but died just as quickly. . . except I've always suspected they didn't die, really. They just. . . went corporate! Hoo-Haa!
And, now, here's the proof. A mission statement. . . for a high school. Please.
Mission Statement
Warren Hills Regional, a dynamic school district, prepares
all students for a future of diverse opportunities and responsibilities
in a challenging and supportive education environment.
. . . a mission statement. Hoo-boy.
Do you ever get that feeling, deep in the pit of your stomach, that sends alarm bells ringing through your soul? You know the one I mean. Like when you just hit the gas pedal instead of the break-- and, for some reason your brain can't immediately grasp, everything is suddenly going SO wrong!
What I'd like to know is exactly when my daughter enrolled in a corporate school? Did she (or I) have a choice in this? Or, more to the point, When did the corporations take over?
Did I miss that memo? No. . .
Okay. I've been accused of being paranoid for a long time. So long, in fact, that I acknowledge some portion of it. I think it's one of the side-effects of an active imagination.
Be that as it may, I'd like to know what PIN HEAD (my guess is Mr. PinHead O'Brien, probably -- and SO not a relation! -- otherwise known as the principal or, in my mind, their 'fearless leader' who, based on our conversations, can't seem to even remember being a teenager-- which means he sprang from a pod) decided it was acceptable to adopt corporate policies within any school, never mind mine! And why didn't they discuss this in their stupid newsletter.
This is not a new war-- so not! When my son was in the 8th grade, I urged him to begin an underground newpaper, telling the truth about what happens at that school. He refused. I told him I'd help him. (This was before blogs when you had to learn HTML in order to have a website.) Well, he's in college now and, as the song says, the beat goes on. . . and kids keep getting the losing end of that stick.
What really amazes me is that the school sees NO CONNECTION between the teen problems the school is rife with-- and their stupid corporate policies.
It's 1984 meets The Moral Majority at this school, believe me. Ever see the movie Bang! Bang! You're Dead!? Well, my kids didn't need to see it-- they live it. My son was the main character-- or nearly. The only thing missing is the Hollywood ending. . . pity. Or, maybe they do need to see it-- because they need to see there is a way out of this. . . hell. I watched it because, when both my kids agree that a movie is great, I want to know what the fuss is about. Well, after viewing it, I wanted to buy a copy and deliver it to Mr. O'Brien-- with the message "here's a look in the mirror."
In case you don't know who the moral majority really is (arrogant name, if ever there was one), they are a SMALL Group of fanatics from the midwest that believe they represent the average American. . . and they want to, essentially, shove their "values" down everyone else's throats. Specifically, they want to ban all rock 'n roll, smoking, drinking, sex altogether, most movies above a G-rating and, generally, anything that people enjoy. Let me put it this way: The moral majority, make the Jehovah's Witnesses look like amateurs.
They rose to prominence in the mid-80's, but died just as quickly. . . except I've always suspected they didn't die, really. They just. . . went corporate! Hoo-Haa!
And, now, here's the proof. A mission statement. . . for a high school. Please.
posted by Marige | 3/09/2006 09:57:00 AM
