Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, July 1, 1994 TAG: 9407010084
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Donald Bullock, director of secondary education in Montgomery County, and Rebecca Sears, a teacher and track coach in Giles County, are seeking the post to oversee the program for troubled youngsters.
The third finalist is Michael McIntosh, the lead teacher in Danville's alternative education program.
The finalists have been in Roanoke the past two days for interviews with Harris and other school administrators.
More than 30 people applied for the post, including some from within the Roanoke school system. But none of the finalists is from Roanoke. The salary for the job is between $48,583 and $75,305, depending on the background, experience and training of the person selected.
Harris hopes to make his selection soon so planning can begin for the next school year.
Bullock was a principal at several schools in North Carolina before he came to Montgomery County. He said he has been in school administration for more than 20 years.
He said some troubled youngsters get into trouble in class because they have no parental direction and supervision. Bullock said he believes that there is no alternative to success in education.
Sears was a teacher at a community college in Florida before she came to Giles County. She has experience in a wide range of educational programs and schools.
Sears said she would not be intimidated by the students in the alternative education program. She has experience in dealing with problem youngsters, using positive reinforcement techniques that can be effective.
Troubled youths need role models they can respect, she said. She said the ideal student-teacher ratio for alternative education is 8 to 1.
McIntosh said he believes that an alternative education program can help troubled students reconnect with school if the program is built on discipline, compassion and mutual respect for students and teachers.
The Danville program has been successful in returning many youngsters to regular classes, he said.
"If you let them know you care, you can discipline them and they will respond," McIntosh told a group of school administrators. "I understand that the students are our customers. We also need to get the parents involved."
McIntosh said he's no miracle worker, but he grew up in a ghetto and understands the youngsters who have gotten into trouble in regular classes.
Roanoke's search for a principal-level administrator has attracted attention because George Franklin's job as director of alternative education is being abolished as part of Harris' restructuring of the program.
Franklin has not applied for the post because it requires a master's degree, which he does not have.
The new administrator may not be called a principal, Harris said, but he or she must have the experience and qualifications of a principal.
Harris recently suspended Franklin for four days for failing to comply with administrative and financial regulations for the program. However, the School Board, on a 3-2 vote, sided with Franklin and overturned the suspension.
Because of the suspension, Franklin said this week that he may leave the program he helped establish in 1986. Franklin said he is not sure that he wants to keep working in an environment where he does not feel comfortable.
by CNB