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Posts Tagged ‘Tom Black’

#BringBackBlack hits 500 signatures

Posted in budget cuts, tagged , , , , on July 6, 2023| 3 Comments »

The movement builds. (Moira Reed photo)

They hit a milestone yesterday.

A petition on change.org calling for the reinstatement of Coupeville High School/Middle School Dean of Students Tom Black picked up its 500th signature Wednesday.

The clarion call, which was launched June 25 by Gabe Reed, hit the round number on day #11.

Black, a 19-year veteran of Coupeville Schools, is part of a series of budget cuts issued by Coupeville Schools Superintendent Steve King.

The actions are in response to the school board passing a “modified education plan” on a 4-1 vote requiring up to 1.45 million in cuts.

This was instituted after the district’s general fund, under the guidance of King and now-retired Business Manager Denise Peet, dropped below the figure mandated by the board — 6% of budgeted expenditures.

This is the second time in recent years this has happened.

Many of the people signing the #bringbackblack petition commented on why they believe it is important to reverse his job loss.

Some selections:

 

Jessica Bester:

Mr. Black is the heart and soul of that school.

He is the ONLY administrator who actually cares about students and their wellbeing.

Not keeping him is a huge mistake, and the students will ultimately be the ones who suffer.

 

Rebecca Dale:

Mr. Black is an incredible, amazing, caring man.

He helped me so much in high school and was one of the biggest supporters I had.

He helped me achieve to graduate – I probably wouldn’t have without him.

If a kid didn’t have lunch or couldn’t afford supplies he always helped, he even bought my senior yearbook for me.

You’re the best Mr. Black, thanks for the candy! 

 

Ana Paula De Souza

I live in Oak Harbor and my daughter attends Coupeville Middle School.

She said Mr. Black is (was) one of the best things about Coupeville MS because he really cares about the students.

She was devastated when I told her the news about him not being at school next school year anymore.

I don’t know Mr. Black personally, but if my daughter says something like that about someone I tend to believe her.

I trust her judgment.

 

Joshua Wilsey:

Mr. Black is a staple in the Coupeville community.

He has changed and altered so many young lives for the better; he’s the one that you can go to when you feel nobody will listen, because he actually listens, and he actually cares.

Without him, I would not have been able to manage my ADHD.

And I would have kept getting into trouble and I wouldn’t have been able to keep grades to play the sports that were an absolute necessity for me as an escape from my day-to-day life.

Mr. Black is for the students, and I will forever be grateful for the impact he had on my life.

 

Lita Woollet:

Mr. Black helped me get away from a lot of the bullying I faced there, pushed me to go to court after I was touched and put on a hit list, and would listen to me talk about it.

He helped me tremendously and he’s always helped my two younger siblings.

He deserves so much more than this; thank you, Mr. Black!

 

The petition can be found here: 

https://www.change.org/p/keep-tom-black-as-the-coupeville-dean-of-students?source_location=search

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“This is scary and alarming”

Posted in budget cuts, tagged , , , , , on July 3, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Jessica Van Velkinburgh

The debate about what should and shouldn’t be included in ongoing budget cuts in the Coupeville School District is the story of the summer.

The following letter to the editor comes to us from Wolf Mom Jessica Van Velkinburgh:

 

What does priority services mean to the Coupeville School District, its parents and its leaders?

When we talk about budget cuts it’s important to acknowledge what’s a priority to keep and what’s seen as excessive and/or unnecessary considering the available budget.

As parents, students and staff, if we were asked to rank these four items in order of priority services, what would your order be?

1 — Adequate special education service that meets the IEP requirements of ALL students ($200k appropriately).

2 — Adequate paraeducators to be able to provide necessary safety and educational services to all students, required by IEPs — 30k average annual salary per paraeducator.

3 — A Dean of Students with over a decade of working with these students inside this district.

A staff member who is the #1 relied upon staff member students trust to confide in when being bullied, feeling unsafe in and out of school, and asking for help with mental health services.

Annual salary — 85k.

4 — A six-figure salaried farm to table private chef experience with a personal assistant to this chef with a pay of 80k salary per year.

A ‘pet project’ to the superintendent, totaling 180k.

Not including anything else related to the lunch program — two salaries only. 

As a mom of a student with an IEP who Coupeville has acknowledged for nearly a decade they can’t/won’t accommodate due to funding, my priorities may vary from yours. 

But keep in mind I also have three children who have a combined 20+ years of schooling in Coupeville — one graduated, one in middle school, and one in elementary.

My husband, myself, and my mom are all Coupeville graduates, so this district is dear to us.

With that said these are my thoughts on our budget crisis.

My second oldest child is autistic and has been enrolled in the Oak Harbor School District since first grade.

She has been in their self-contained special education program as an out of district student for over nine years.

All nine of those years Coupeville released their state funding for her to Oak Harbor so they wouldn’t have to accommodate her IEP.

Several of those years Superintendent Steve King signed an agreement with Oak Harbor to pay upwards of 30k annually on top of her state funding so he didn’t have to accommodate her special education IEP in Coupeville.

What does that amount of given away money total, and what could it have done for Coupeville, as well as other students in the district whose needs aren’t met?

I know at times many students with IEPs were being sent away from the district as well, with the same financial loss to Coupeville.

This year, with the support of the OSPI Special Education Director, we have met with the Coupeville Special Education Director to require they meet her IEP and accommodate her as the law requires, so she can attend her home school next year.

In this meeting the Coupeville director acknowledged that they not only don’t and likely never will have the self-contained special education program her and many other Coupeville students need, they are extremely short staffed in paraeducators.

That makes it impossible at the moment to accommodate her IEP, which requires a 1:1 para throughout the duration of the day.

They assured me over the summer they would be filling this position to ensure there will be adequate paraeducators for my daughter and the other students.

Now I am seeing not only did they eliminate one full time paraeducator position, they also cut the hours of the remaining paras.

Meaning in essence, if they assign her the full-time para next year as the law requires, the remaining students in the district are now short two full time paras with eliminated hours for the remaining.

This is scary and alarming not only for me and my child, but for the parents and other students that will no longer get their legally required paraeducator support because this was seen as a lower ranking priority to Mr. Steve King and the board.

With all that considered, what seems to take #1 priority for the above mentioned is the farm to table private chef service they offer at our district.

Now, don’t get me wrong, it’s a wonderful idea.

And the students and us parents think it’s a great program IF, and only IF, there are extra funds to make this program work.

But in what I believe to be a biased decision, the superintendent is protecting his ‘pet project’, his ‘resume builder’, over protecting what’s essential for students to have a free and safe education.

Their most basic right.

The salary going to the private chef (100k annually) as well as the salary going to the private chef’s assistant (80k) would cover not only Mr. Black and 3+ paraeducators.

It could instead cover a fulltime special education teacher, and 2-3 full time paraeducators, which is what is needed for a self-contained special education program.

Or that 180k would rehire Mr. Black (who I whole heartedly believe saves fragile teenage lives every year in our school district), fill the eliminated para position, at least keeping the number the same as opposed to 2+ less than promised.

While still allowing for a reasonable salary for an adequate lunch program coordinator.

What I would ask is, are the priorities of the leaders of the Coupeville school district in line with the best interests of their students?

Mr. Black saves lives; paraeducators and children receiving the services needed for a safe and free education truly saves lives of special needs children.

We can even argue saving sports and athletic positions can help keep struggling children alive and on the right track.

But the question is why, when a luxury lunch program in a small district can’t save lives, why is it being placed so high on the priority list above all others?

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“He is irreplaceable, plain and simple”

Posted in budget cuts, tagged , , , , on June 30, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Coupeville High School Class of ’82 grad Matt Bepler injects some rock and roll into the conversation with his new take on a classic design.

United, with one voice.

From the moment Superintendent Steve King cut the position of Dean of Students at Coupeville High School/Middle School, the outcry has been intense.

And it’s not stopping anytime soon.

Wolf Nation wants the world to know what Tom Black has accomplished the past 19 years, and they want him reinstated.

Our latest letter comes from Nicole Strelow, mother to two Coupeville students — Class of 2023 Valedictorian Helen and younger brother Thomas.

 

Mr. Black is an immeasurable resource in our school district.

The kids in Coupeville know he is genuinely invested in their lives and that is a trust built from years of his efforts within our schools.

This trust is something that cannot be replaced by dividing his role to other staff members. 

Mr. Black has provided a source of comfort for the kids knowing that an adult is in their corner in what may be the only safe place for some children.

For the kids lucky to have a secure home the comfort comes in knowing he is their cheerleader as well.

Removing Mr. Black and splitting his job between multiple employees is an unrealistic step.

He is irreplaceable, plain and simple.

In doing this we would be relinquishing some kids to fall through the cracks in the system.

Removing Mr. Black would unfortunately be taking Coupeville schools in the wrong direction for the sake of budget.

Having Mr. Black so visible around the schools and knowledgeable about the students is our largest factor in prevention and keeping our schools safe.

I know the school board is trying to fix our budget and this is a hard task.

But the most important investment the board can make for the children is keeping a valued staff member that makes the biggest positive difference in their lives.

I urge the board to reconsider a different budget cut for the sake of the community.

I would also like to thank Mr. Black personally.

Thank you for not only being a guardian to all the children of Coupeville but thank you for being a support for all of us parents.

You always had kind words of encouragement to parents bringing their 6th grader for the first time to middle school or the parent watching their senior graduate.

Knowing you are walking the halls and greeting every child is a great relief to parents.

Thank you for being the example to our children of what a productive and kind human being in our community looks like.

Nicole Strelow

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“He is a friend to all”

Posted in budget cuts, tagged , , , , on June 30, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Megan Behan (left) is joined by Tom Black and Kimberly (Farage) Sewell at her high school graduation. (Photo courtesy Behan)

Two students, almost a decade apart, both bound by their appreciation for a man who had a major impact on their lives.

Megan Behan graduated from Coupeville High School in 2021, while Kimberly (Farage) Sewell received her diploma in 2012.

The former has appeared here on Coupeville Sports numerous times for her athletic and academic achievements, while the latter departed CHS mere months before I launched this blog.

Today, the dynamic duo swing by to offer their support to the #bringbackblack movement, which calls for Coupeville Superintendent Steve King to reverse his decision to cut the school’s Dean of Students position.

That budget cut move brings an end to a 19-year run by Tom Black, something Behan and Sewell, like many in Wolf Nation, are not happy about.

 

Hello!

We thought it would be helpful to show the impact Mr. Black has had on student’s lives even nearly 10 years apart.

This man has done so much for this school, and we want the school board to see that!

The loss of Mr. Black to the Coupeville School District is a dreadful mistake.

Mr. Black is a core piece not only to Coupeville Schools but to the community as well.

I personally would have not gotten though high school without this man as an ally.

He was always the first high five and good morning of each day. His door was always open when troubles arose.

When I returned to Coupeville in 2021 for a graduation, he was not only the FIRST but ONLY staff member to welcome me home.

I could hear his big booming voice “KIMBERLY FARAGE” from across the way.

He has always made sure students were heard and loved. For most that is a vital resource.

Middle school and high school are hard times.

Students lives are changing rapidly and this can leave many feeling lost.

The stress we have in our world these days is only growing. Students now are facing situations that us that came before cannot understand.

Mr. Black is the beacon many confided in during hard times.

I understand that some members of the school board view his position of not high priority.

But from the voice of a past student you could not be more wrong.

There is way more that happens at school aside from math and science.

Not having Mr. Black around is a HUGE mistake.

I have always been proud of this community and its ability to stand together.

The loss of Mr. Black is going to impact our small town greatly.

I challenge you to ask any student about their time at CHS and I can guarantee their stories are not absent of Mr. Black.

We may be a small town, but our voices have always been loud!

We need to BRING BACK BLACK!

Kimberly (Farage) Sewell
Class of 2012

 

I, like many, am heartbroken that Coupeville Schools has decided to let go of Mr. Black.

I understand budget cuts are necessary to keep the school in good financial standing but cutting Mr. Black, who has a vital role in every student’s experience at CHS and CMS, is a huge mistake.

I know I am not alone when I say that Mr. Black is the reason I am on the right path in life right now.

He provided open ears, advice when asked, and of course his signature good morning high-five, which I looked forward to every morning.

He is a friend to all and somehow has enough compassion to share with both the high school and middle school.

As much as I loved all of my teachers, there is no staff member that can measure up to his reliability and comfort.

He was and always is there.

I know from a financial standpoint this may not seem like much, but from a social perspective it means the world.

Coupeville, if you follow through with this, just know the effect it will have on student’s mental health.

I hate to see a future at CHS with no Mr. Black.

#BringBackBlack

Megan Behan
Class of 2021

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“Mr. Black always pointed me in the right direction”

Posted in budget cuts, tagged , , , , on June 29, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Siblings Jada Heaton and Ryan Oliver both walked the hallways at CHS under the watchful eye of Tom Black. (Photos courtesy Jennifer Heaton)

Their stories are unique, but the sentiment at the core is the same.

Local students, current and former, are pouring their hearts out in the wake of Tom Black’s 19-year run at Coupeville High School coming to a premature end.

Budget cuts are necessary, and it’s the position — Dean of Students — which is what is being sliced, we are told.

To which the response is — Tom Black is more than his job title.

He is the glue helping to hold together generations of kids.

Our latest letter in the ongoing #bringbackblack movement comes from Ryan Oliver, CHS Class of 2010:

 

Coupeville will always have a special place in my heart and Mr. Black is a significant reason for that.

Middle and high school were real weird times for me, like I’m sure it is and was for many kids.

I wouldn’t say I was a bad kid by any means.

I just did obnoxious things and would a lot of the time cross the line.

Or, if anyone here was around with me in those years, it was talking.

Talking, talking, talking, is what I would get in trouble for, and I HATED it and I let it be known I hated it, because why me?

And why is it such a big deal?

But you know who was always there to listen? Mr. Black.

Countless times he was the person who was in between me and actual trouble.

I’m sure behind the scenes he vouched for me to not get some sort of suspension.

Looking back, who knows if I deserved that benefit of the doubt? Maybe I needed a little kick in the ass.

But I think without that benefit of the doubt and him listening to me and hearing me out that I would be a different person.

He never made me feel like I was a bad kid.

In fact, he would shoot it straight with me and explicitly say I was a good kid, but I just need to stop doing these “dumb” things.

In all honesty he probably knew about my anxiety/depression when few people knew in those times that I was taking medicine for it.

It’s something that I still deal with today, but he was one of the people early in my life that didn’t make me feel like my thoughts and feelings were weird.

Looking back with thankfulness, looking forward with joy.

At times, with a fork in the road, Mr. Black always pointed me in the right direction.

I trusted him, he made me feel heard, and made me feel like I was his friend and when you’re in middle school and high school sometimes that’s all you need.

It wasn’t just me either.

He would talk and joke around and make people feel welcomed and loved every day. Every student.

He’d be at the bus stop in the morning saying hi and greeting everyone and be right back there at 2:30 when everyone was leaving.

He would chat with you in the halls and when he popped in your class for a few minutes it was always a treat.

I’m still best friends with Jason Bagby, Chase Griffin, and Jason Ornburn, and over the years we’ve shared stories and reminiscenced about Mr. Black and the impact he had on our and other peoples lives.

Don’t rob those feelings and memories from students from today or tomorrow.

Don’t let their last memories be about how they wish he was still here or that things are so different without him.

Don’t let a student be thinking in their head, “I wish Mr. Black was still here. He would understand.”

Because it will happen.

There will be a vacuum that nobody will be able to fill.

He’s a true one of one and it would be shameful and an absolute disgrace if you let go of one of the kindest, most thoughtful, and genuine people that has helped thousands of students in his tenure at Coupeville.

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