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| | Author | Messages | |
sjtrim
Posts:388
 | | 05/07/2008 7:13 PM |
 Alert | The Hale family went Christmas caroling and gave out gifts to all the employees and that's what you have a problem with? Chances are Aaron didn't even know which DVD they were giving everyone. His wife is really nice like that and she probably just got them on her own. The fact that they were Joseph Smith DVD's doesn't mean that they told all the teachers to show them in class. That's insane! I think it was meant to be a nice family outing, doing something nice for their employees and it gets blown way out of whack! I bet if they knew people were making such an issue over it, they'd regret doing it. I know I would regret it if it was me. Too bad really.
As far as Mr. Gregory goes, I know that lately he has been hiring and interviewing like crazy. They have two school's to hire for now, keep that in mind. At the beginning of the school year he was available a lot more than he is now. That is what Ms. Sorrell is for though. She's been "filling" in for him while he interviews people. I know that Aaron is busy with getting the new campus done, but I do think he is available for questions. Mr. Gregory lives way out in Queen Creek. Did you know that? Maybe he has had some family issues to deal with. A few months ago his wife went through some things and he was gone for a couple of days taking care of her and their kids. He does have 7 of them you know and maybe they have a lot going on right now. So don't wait until after school to go in there. Go by while school is going on. The aides at the front desk can answer any questions also. If Mr. Gregory isn't available, then find someone who is. Don't let it annoy you, good grief! I feel totally comfortable talking to any of them. I know that Ms. Sorrell is there when school is over, find her and wait if you have to so that you can talk to her.
My kids hear about churches that some of their friends attend and they ask questions about it cause they do things different than we do. Do I care? NO! Who cares what religion teachers are. It's just nonsense. Move on people and if you don't like Legacy then put your kids in another school! We won't miss negative people who like to spread rumors about a great school! | |
Member
Joined: Apr 2007
"A day without laughter is a day wasted." Charlie Chaplin | |
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| | Eanizer
Posts:0
| | 05/07/2008 7:53 PM |
Alert | In response to a question about this thread from another community forum.
Tony,
We generally do not participate in the forums on issues regarding the school, as this would quickly consume most of our time if we let it. That being said, since you did contact me directly, I will respond to help clarify some of the things that have been said:
Legacy Traditional School is not, nor will it ever be, a religious school. Arizona State charter school law prohibits charter schools from actively preaching religion. Were we to do so, we would lose our accreditation and our funding. LTS does participate in the Arizona Department of Education’s Character Education program. Here is a quote from the Department of Ed’s website:
“Our Vision...
To develop youth to act and live with positive character values.
Our Mission...
To inspire and support educators, parents and others who touch the lives of youth to instill in youth the traits of positive character.
Character Education Defined
Character education teaches universally-accepted values, such as trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship, and motivates youth to incorporate these values into their lives. Character education should be non-partisan and non-religious.” http://www.ade.az.gov/charactered/
LTS is a patriotic school. We teach the students that America is a great country, but everything we teach is “non-partisan and non-religious.” We maintain high standards in dress, behavior, and academics. These are standards that parents were aware about before they enrolled in school. Standards that have not changed, nor will they change. The reason that people come to LTS is because of these high standards of dress, behavior, and academics, not in spite of them.
Charter schools are all about choice, and we support parents right to chose to come to our school, or not. We are not a perfect fit for everyone, but for those who do like our program, they have seen amazing results in their students and we are very pleased with the academic progress that has been made this year. The feedback that we have received from the majority of parents has been overwhelmingly positive. So much so that we will be having two campuses open next year, and will be expanding to 7th and 8th grade. I am the first to admit that we are not without faults, but we do our best to recognize and change them where we find them.
As far as the “LDS Video” that has been mentioned in this thread, I would like to clarify what actually happened. For over 30 years my family has gone Christmas Caroling to our friends and neighbors every year. Each time bringing a small treat and a gift. When I married my wife and we began having kids, we decided to carry on this same tradition in our family, and we have done so for the 9 years of our marriage. This year as we contemplated who to Carol too and what to give them, in addition to our close friends and neighbors, we decided that we really wanted to Carol to each of the teachers and staff at the school. We really appreciate everything that they have done, and we wanted to do something personal for them, just from our family.
Because of the large number of people we would be Caroling to, we decided to take frozen cookie dough (so they could cook it when they most needed it), and a Christmas movie. I love Jimmie Stewart, and he did two of my favorite Christmas movies, “It’s a Wonderful Life” and “Mr. Krueger’s Christmas”. By the time we had finalized our list, it was late November, and finding the large number of movies that we needed became difficult. We were able to find the 25th Anniversary Edition of “Mr. Krueger’s Christmas” for a really good price, and so we decided to go that route. For those of you who have not seen it, “Mr. Krueger’s Christmas” is the Oscar Award Winning Jimmy Stewart, as a lonely widower who, on Christmas Eve, dreams that he is conducting the Grammy Award Winning Mormon Tabernacle Choir. He then meets a family of Carolers, who later invite him to join them, and help him to have a Merry Christmas. The 25th Anniversary DVD was produced by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The title feature was “Mr. Krueger’s Christmas”, and it did also contain a selection of Christmas Songs by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and also a short movie about Joseph Smith. My wife and I both worried about giving it to the teachers, and seeming as if we were proselytizing to them, or as if it was coming from the school. We decided that Jimmy Stewart and the Tabernacle Choir were universal enough that it was fine, and we also decided that caroling to them in the evenings would be sufficient to let them know that this was from us personally, and not from the school.
For the most part everyone who we caroled to was happy to have us and seemed to enjoy it. Mid way through the caroling (which took 8 – 10 of our valuable December evenings), we heard through the grapevine that someone was offended by the video. In truth, it really hurt us deeply that we were spending all of this time and effort to try and do something nice for everyone, and they were offended by the gesture. We almost decided to abandon any further caroling, but our kids were loving it and wanted to continue, so we did. We will certainly continue to go caroling each year, and we will likely continue to take a treat and a small gift to those we visit, though sadly I admit that we will think hard about whether we go to our teachers and staff again.
It does sadden me that in today’s world religion and race are still an ongoing issue. I would hope that as a school we would be judged by our results, and how we teach, not by the religion or race of our principals or teachers. This political cycle has seen two major presidential candidates have to make speeches addressing either their religion, or their race. Both should be a non issue, but sadly they continue to be. If we were preaching Mormonism, or any other religion, I would expect complaints and expect these sort of criticisms, but we are not. I expect people to judge our school by what we teach, and the high academic growth that they see their students achieving. We are trying to build a school where race, religion, and nationality are not issues amongst our students. Charter schools are about choice, and by choosing Legacy Traditional School parents are choosing to support our high standards of dress, behavior, and academic rigor. We have the best teachers and staff in the state, and it troubles me when people try to use race, religion, or anything else to try and cause divisions amongst our school and our community. We have a fantastic school and I hope parents who are new to the community evaluate our school for themselves, rather than relying upon vitriolic diatribes and unfounded gossip.
Thanks,
Aaron Hale
Executive Director
Legacy Traditional School
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| | *rikimaru*
Posts:485
| | 05/07/2008 8:22 PM |
Alert | vitriolic diatribes? wow thats pretty impressive hehe  i will say the OP had concerns, not necessarily saying that covert LDS stuff was going on. it is good to see mr hale address these concerns and he is right, people can choose to send their kids there or not. boils down to that i guess | |
listened for, they cannot be heard;looked for, they cannot be seen; felt for, they cannot be touched: old ninja proverb | |
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| | MommyMac
Posts:47
| | 05/07/2008 9:27 PM |
Alert | | I am really not sure how I feel about this issue....I understand how some feel the DVD was offensive, and I think I would feel pressure as a teacher because the administration are all LDS. However, that said, Christmas Caroling to teachers and staff members could also be offensive if that teacher or staff member did not celebrate Christmas. I think Mr. Hale and his family had good intentions, however made a poor choice in judgement. If this happened with public school administration and staff the uproar would be HUGE!!! Just a thought.... | | | |
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| | DaybyDay
Posts:288
| | 05/08/2008 7:11 AM |
Alert | | sjtrim you sure have a lot to say about the matter and a lot invested in clearing the good name of Legacy Traditional School and Mr. Hale. I think he did a fine job of explaining himself. Adn while this may have been a poor choice (for the reasons mentioned by MommyMac), it is over, done, and finished. I don't think that we should berate the person who brought this to the forum's attention either. Gosh, if someone says something contrary on this forum...you sure get your butt handed back to you don't you. And lastly, I think the attitude of "well if you don't like it, go somewhere else" is really poor. What kind of business model is that? What kind of personal character model is that? So, if someone says something you don't like, you tell them to take a hike? Why would a principal of a school even suggest that? That seems like a big issue within itself. The tone of that is just wrong to me. | | | |
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| | sjtrim
Posts:388
| | 05/08/2008 8:59 AM |
Alert | Well someone's got to squash these ridiculous rumors. I have nothing invested in this, I just love the school and feel that these rumors are silly. I didn't know that Mr. Hale was going to reply to anything, I'm glad he did. I knew from the beginning that telling everyone LTS is switching over to a mormon school was ridiculous. It's too bad that a few people had to take a nice family outing and make a big deal about it. They came by my house and gave us a DVD, and my kids loved it. If someone says something on here that I don't agree with or that I have a strong opinion about, I'm going to say something. I'm not the only one who does that either. Everyone does, including you, DaybyDay, I'm sure. The OP asked a question, I knew the answer, I answered it. That should have been it, but we can see that wasn't the case now was it. People continued blowing this thing way out of whack! They are just trying to run a good school and they continue to get rumors told about them that aren't even warranted. I'm the one who said if you don't like Legacy go somewhere else. I never said the principal said that and I don't see that in Mr. Hales' letter either. He simply says they aren't a perfect fit for everyone and I agree. I'm not the only one who has been saying to take your kids to another school either. It seems that if your kids are going to a school you don't like, why would you keep them there? That's my point. I wasn't happy with Santa Cruz last year, so I removed my kids from that school. Simple as that. Some people like Santa Cruz, some don't. Some like Legacy, some don't. I was just simply trying to squash crazy rumors. I don't think the OP should have posted her concern on an open forum either. Talking to someone from the school would have been the way to go I think. New people thinking about going to Legacy may see this thread and decide they don't want their kids to go there, which is really not a good thing to base this school on. They need to try it for themselves before judging whether or not it's a good school, not just from some rumor they read. I would hate to see this school fail, because we like it a lot and I want my kids to continue going there.
I was an aide at Legacy at the beginning of the year for a few months. No, I've never shared that cause I didn't think it was neccessary. In the few months that I worked there, I got to know the staff pretty well. Maybe that's why I don't like the school being attacked by rumors. Now you know why I feel the need to defend it. My children go there and I know the people that work there. I don't like seeing the school be attacked. I'm going to defend the place where my kids go to school whether people like it or not. I think his letter is great and really puts rumors to rest. I have nothing else to say on this topic now. I just wanted to answer the previous post. I still just think it's too bad that what his family was doing as a nice gesture got turned into something offensive. I feel bad that his family went to all that trouble and people didn't appreciate the thought. | |
Member
Joined: Apr 2007
"A day without laughter is a day wasted." Charlie Chaplin | |
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|  | CyndiWitczak
Posts:217
| | 05/08/2008 1:19 PM |
Alert | | If Aunt Erma gives you an ugly sweater, you say thank you and put it in a box. The perception of a gift is from the receiver's view. A gift given is a gift. What Mr. Hale does away from school is away from school. I think it's a wonderful tradition he and his family have. What an amazing way to grow up. No, I don't know him, though I should because he is 7-8 houses away from me. People take this stuff way too seriously. Be grateful. As kids with VERY strict Catholic parents we listened to recordings of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. I didn't know what a Mormon or a Tabernacle were, but it was beautiful. It was appreciated as music... good, Christian music. People are no longer grateful or thankful for anything, including gifts. | |
Yes, that's really my name | |
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| | MommyMac
Posts:47
| | 05/08/2008 1:33 PM |
Alert | People are no longer grateful or thankful for anything, including gifts.
Cyndi,
I have to disagree with you. People can be very generous and thankful. I think the difference in this situation is that the "gift" made a teacher or two feel uncomfortable and pressured. That may not have been the intent, but the damage was done. I find it amazing that as teachers, we constantly have to "dance" around the beliefs of all of our students. Christmas vacation has become winter break, Halloween in some districts has become "Imagination Day", and heaven forbid we mention Easter. This administrator took Christmas DVD's with a story of Joseph Smith on them and handed them out to ALL of his employees. Now, I know you LOVE this school, but if you take yourself out of that situation for a minute, can you see how his actions may have been misinterpreted? The LDS religion does have a lot of pull in the valley and some people feel threatened by that. | | | |
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| | CyndiWitczak
Posts:217
| | 05/08/2008 1:38 PM |
Alert | Posted By MommyMac on 05/08/2008 1:33 PM People are no longer grateful or thankful for anything, including gifts.
Cyndi,
I have to disagree with you. People can be very generous and thankful. I think the difference in this situation is that the "gift" made a teacher or two feel uncomfortable and pressured. That may not have been the intent, but the damage was done. I find it amazing that as teachers, we constantly have to "dance" around the beliefs of all of our students. Christmas vacation has become winter break, Halloween in some districts has become "Imagination Day", and heaven forbid we mention Easter. This administrator took Christmas DVD's with a story of Joseph Smith on them and handed them out to ALL of his employees. Now, I know you LOVE this school, but if you take yourself out of that situation for a minute, can you see how his actions may have been misinterpreted? The LDS religion does have a lot of pull in the valley and some people feel threatened by that. You just made my point. If you were the principal of a school and you gave all of your employees (away from school) a Christmas gift and one of them was Jewish or Muslim, does that make the gift wrong? It's a gift. Say thank you and move on. | |
Yes, that's really my name | |
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| | MommyMac
Posts:47
| | 05/08/2008 3:04 PM |
Alert | You just made my point. If you were the principal of a school and you gave all of your employees (away from school) a Christmas gift and one of them was Jewish or Muslim, does that make the gift wrong? It's a gift. Say thank you and move on.
Yes, especially when I am their administrator or boss and my gift has religious implications!!!! What part of this are you not understanding? How is it that you cannot see how some people would find this offensive? I am sure you have been offended many times, do you tell the person who offended you "Thank you"? | | | |
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| | sjtrim
Posts:388
| | 05/08/2008 3:23 PM |
Alert | I agree with Cyndi 100%! Posted By MommyMac on 05/08/2008 3:04 PM
Yes, especially when I am their administrator or boss and my gift has religious implications!!!! What part of this are you not understanding? How is it that you cannot see how some people would find this offensive? I am sure you have been offended many times, do you tell the person who offended you "Thank you"?
It takes a lot to offend me, but yes, I have said thank you before because a gift is a gift! Say thanks, be grateful and move on! Turn around and give it to someone else that you think may like it better. Mr. Hale's letter says that it wasn't meant to have any implications and they even debated about giving them out for that exact reason. People are just way to sensitive nowadays. Who cares, it's a gift. I just don't get what all this hoopla is about. Now can we stop all of this and go back to our corners and play nice?  | |
Member
Joined: Apr 2007
"A day without laughter is a day wasted." Charlie Chaplin | |
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| | MommyMac
Posts:47
| | 05/08/2008 3:31 PM |
Alert | Now can we stop all of this and go back to our corners and play nice?
***Walking away with a smile***
For now at least! | | | |
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| | *rikimaru*
Posts:485
| | 05/08/2008 9:37 PM |
Alert | | good thing i grabbed my popcorn early on, plus a soda&some gummy worms. this really did get good hehe | |
listened for, they cannot be heard;looked for, they cannot be seen; felt for, they cannot be touched: old ninja proverb | |
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| | thatperson
Posts:60
| | 05/09/2008 1:10 PM |
Alert |
The Hales came a caroling to my house. It was very nice. I think Mr. Hale and Mr. Gregory are the people reaching for the popcorn. It seems that just like with everything else on this site people are looking for something negative about LTS. It is actually refreshing that all people can come up with is religious paranoia. | | | |
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