Letters to the Editor

Why was Principal Philpot ‘given the boot’?

Editor: After recovering from the shock and dismay of hearing Micaela Philpot tendered her resignation at the request of Barbara Young, the outgoing School Superintendent, I sent the following letter to the Board of Trustees:
When you search for a candidate for the position of Sonoma Valley High School Principal, please consider the importance of these qualities, many of which you may say should go without saying:
• Someone with experience
• Someone knowledgeable about education laws
• Someone who is professional in their demeanor and presentation
• Someone who loves what they do
• Someone with the energy to meet the myriad of extra-curricular demands once the school day is over
• Someone who is willing to do what is best for the students and the school
• Someone who is well respected by teachers, vice principals and students
• Someone who supports innovation and is willing to try something new
• Someone who is supportive of their staff and brings out their best
• Someone who leads by example
• Someone who is approachable
• Someone who is passionate about their job
• Someone who understands the challenges of our community
• Someone who lends stability to the educational experience of our children
• Someone invested in our community
Oh, wait. I just described Micaela Philpot. What else is it you are looking for? What is best for our children? What is best for the school?
Shirley Licari-Daher
Sonoma

Editor: Exactly what is your agenda, Ms. Young? Micaela Philpot has brought leadership back to Sonoma Valley High School. She is respected by not only parents and staff but by the students at the high school. Before Mrs. Philpot you brought in someone from out of the area to “bring new leadership to the school;” we all saw how that went. Gang issues increased, the school seemed disorganized and the principal moved on. Micaela Philpot has proven herself to all of us. Not only did she step up when the Board asked and help them out of a jam, she has shown dedication, leadership and she genuinely cares for our kids and their futures. She was there for you and this is how you reward her. I am glad to hear that you are retiring if this is the sort of decisions we would have to look forward to from you. Enjoy your golden years.
Mary Reece, parent

Sonoma
Editor: Why is it that controversial or questionable matters involving public employees are kept secret and considered sacrosanct? It is one thing for a private business to make personnel decisions free of public scrutiny, but why should decisions that might result in the dismissal or reprimand of a public employee be shielded from public review? It is after all the public’s money provided to that individual by way of salary, be that person a public high school principal, a police officer or a government employee.
Why do we blindly accept the dictum that these personnel matters are none of our business, when these employees are doing public service work? If someone in the public’s employ is not doing a satisfactory job, or has behaved unethically, or has been in repeated violation of that job’s requirements, isn’t it the public’s right to know that information?
We have no idea why SVHS Principal Philpot was given the boot or forced to resign by outgoing School Superintendent Barbara Young. And that’s the problem. By conducting public personnel matters behind closed doors and hiding behind a veil of secrecy, we the public have no way of holding any of these individuals accountable. This general lack of transparency and accountability serves no one, especially the public.
Will Shonbrun
Sonoma

‘Ruby Morning Playgarden’ article misleading

Editor: I am writing in reaction to a wrong statement made by Spencer in the article he wrote about Marianne Frost’s preschool, “Ruby Morning Playgarden.”
Spencer stated that: “Ruby Morning isn’t a preschool that prepares children academically for kindergarten, but instead gives them simple experiences, in a hands-on curriculum from which they develop their own imagination and a basis for later learning.”
Waldorf education, and what Marianne is striving for in her program, is actually one of the most important preparations for academic learning and for so much more.
At that age of 2 to 5, and until their 20s, the brain of a child is very busy developing itself, wiring itself for all the tasks that will be required in life; academic learning included. The hands-on activities Marianne provides are actually vital to that process. There is this myth in our culture that having 2- to 5- year-olds sit for many hours behind desks while having them trace alphabets and numbers ­­– as is done in many mainstream program ­– will prepare them for the world of academia. Wrong! I encourage parents, caregivers, and others interested in education and child development to look at the research on child and brain development. This scientific research echoes again and again, what a Waldorf-based educational environment, such as Ruby Morning, strives to provide.
Kathy Hargitt, M.A.
Sonoma

Noteworthy Dance
Editor: Something noteworthy happened last Saturday night, the Sassarini Father/Daughter Dance.
Sonoma has been my home since ’82; I am grateful for such a blessing. I spent 16 years in Valley middle school classrooms, another blessing. Sonoma has changed dramatically, as have the classrooms. It is a simple truism that change is difficult and we resist it.
There is a theory that one can look ten years ahead into a community’s future by spending time in neighborhood schools, that there you’ll experience the young face of change. We already know intuitively that community connections grow for parents on athletic field sidelines, but it is in the day-to-day of the schools where relationships truly have a chance to weave together, tapestry-like, into a stronger fabric.
The father-daughter dance was pretty cool. Sassarini broadly represents Sonoma. Like our high school, it probably reflects very closely the changing community make-up. What a fun time we had. The music was such that only inanimate objects like chairs weren’t dancing. The daughters were thoroughly mixed and moving like a tide; dads bumped together like spinning tops. What a fun time we had.
Way to go volunteers, kids, parents, and Principal Wilson!
Gary De Smet
Sonoma