Politics. Period.

The final decision to not renew Dr. Bilal is the most embarrassing and blatant act of politics that I have seen. The principal has shown that he is more than capable of running the high school and moving it forward. He presented numerous data points that showed his progress and over 100 supporters came out last week to publicly state their support for him at his Donaldson Hearing in which he agreed to be held in public.

As Dr. Bilal shared data, the Interim Superintendent Belin-Pyles showed once again why she is not qualified to hold the highest position in the district or select or  evaluate district administrators. Her attempted responses in light of Bilal's well prepared and delivered presentation proved her totally incompetent and inept and made her look like the "fish out water" that she is. I don't know her personally, but so far her record over the past year, especially following Gallon who I have yet to hear anyone challenged his leadership or educational skills, is an utter failure ridden with fumbles and snafus.

The Cook relocation debacle, public statement from principals that they had not been evaluated, promotion of a principal that did not meet the minimum qualifications, pattern of hiding from the media and offering no comments or responses to direct questions, and non renewal of Dr. Bilal show that Ms. Belin Pyles is not fit to be Superintendent of Schools. Add to the fact that according to numerous comments that she has no experience as a principal or teacher for that matter, the district is on a track to failure, cronyism, and rampant politics under her leadership.

It is common knowledge that persons that are unqualified, incompetent, or unfit to do their jobs usually survive and sometimes thrive due to politics. They make no decisions on their own, take no position on matters, and are beholding to the people that put them in place and not the organization that they should be serving. The Plainfield district and children are ill-served by this type of leadership.

And before I get any nasty comments, this post is not about how nice, kind, or sweet a person is. It is about how politics continue to run this district and city in the ground. It is the politics that votes out Lenny Cathcart but that still keeps in place a convicted felon in Abdull Haqq on the Board despite the law stating that it is illegal to do so. It is also the politics that would have the same convicted felon that is a Board member publicly state who Bilal's successor will be. The fix is already in. Such is politics.

Dr. Bilal will not be back at the high school next year. Based on his proven track record before he even arrived to Plainfield, I am sure he will land on his feet and probably be on the prevailing end of a lawsuit against the district.

If one questions whether or not there are conspiracies that play out in the back rooms of City Hall or in the Executive Sessions of Board Meetings, read the released minutes on Maria's Blog. They are very telling in the Gallon matter and I suspect he too should be licking his legal chops after reading some of the statements made by Board members and even the Board attorney.

I suspect that Dr. Bilal too would be wise to start looking into the discussions that involved his nonrewenal, the Board members that supported him, and the superintendent's take on the matter as presented to the Board.

The elections are the most obvious of the political process. They allow citizens to participate in democracy and determine who is going to represent them and their interests. Over a year ago, the process was underway to rid  the district of "wayward" reforms that were brought in by a young energetic, idealistic superintendent. These same innovative reforms were celebrated by the local and State media and are still place to this day in the district. He seemed to have had a vision and was able to use data to show and measure the progress of the district and reforms that he instituted. His numbers and initiatives showed  that he was doing right by the district. He was well educated and held an earned doctorate.

Plainfield was not ready for such reform from outsider, from one who was not one of their own.

Yes. I am talking about Dr. Steve Gallon. I am also talking about Dr. Brian Bilal. One is from Florida. One is from Plainfield. In an effort to move a reform agenda is doesnt matter where you are from when people are stuck on politics and maintaining the status quo. It is well known that the status quo in Plainfield is failing schools, incompetence, cronyism, nepotism, and politics.

In the midst of the gang violence and deaths of young people right here in Plainfield over the past six months who are usually black or hispanic, these two gentleman defied the odds and could have served as positive role models for the youth, especially black male youth in Plainfield.

But it won't be.  The reason that it won't be has nothing to do with their ability, qualifications, credentials, work ethic, or knowledge. Those are matters that seem to apply to the current Board and district leadership. They won't win or succeed because of their ability, qualifications, credentials, work ethic, or knowledge. They win and succeeed because of their politics. They so do even at the expense of the students and downward spiral of the district.

It has everything to do with politics in Plainfield, New Jersey. Period.

On Cowards and Politics

The mailer I received on the City Council Election is sickening. The sponsor and author shows his cowardice and what type of person he is by attacking the daughter of one of the candidates. My support for either team is not important. What is important is that I do not support below the belt, gutter politics that have become a staple of Plainfield over the past several years and of which too many of us by continuing to elect these people continue to tolerate.

This type of politics and campaigning is not only a reflection on the sponsor, author or people that are running, it is really a reflection on the community because such mailers and campaign talk clearly state that we the electorate will easily fall for it. This was the type of rhetoric that got the Grand Slam Team elected last year. They campaigned on lies and distortions against Dr. Gallon that can finally be read in the Executive Session Minutes that are now on Maria's Blog. The personnel matter can be now seen for what it is, something that the Minutes reflect Wilma Campbell knew all of the time. It seemed to had been the lawyers hand in the personnel matter and the South Plainfield enrollment issue. Both, to quote a fellow blogger, "rang hollow" but eventually accomplished their goal of getting the superintendent out of office.

So if personnel and ethics was the issue, why are we a year later facing a situation where a member of the Grand Slam Team is going to have to be removed because he is a convicted felon, a principal has been hired that did not meet the minimum qualifications while Campbell is the HR Chair, and the Board President has shown herself to be the most rude, uncouth person in a position of leadership? I dont know her but read her remarks to Olddoc and could not believe that they came from the person to be representing our district and students.

I could not resist using this as an example of how the electorate continues to be fooled by dirty politics, lies, and sensationalism. The mailer that implicated a candidates daughter that interned at PMUA was not fair, inappropriate and cowardly. There are some areas that should be sacred in politics and that is one's family and children. There have been well documented reports that even the lowest career criminals have established such codes of respect and honor in not offending one's family or children, i.e., the Mafia. They have a code.

In the Politics of Plainfield there seems not to be a code of honor  or respect among some politicians who will do, say, or mail anything to get themselves or their team elected.

We can no longer fault them when they are successful. We need to fault ourselves for falling for this silly games of lies, cowardice, and deceit. Their success in getting elected over and over again is our failure.

I thought I had seen it all last year during the school board election. After learning what I knew from my own research and seeing it confirmed in the Executive Session Minutes posted on Marias Blog, I had hoped that many, especially after seeing the district's decline in performance over the last year and rise in incompetence, cronyism, and politics, the electorate would learn and do better. I guess we will see this week. on Wednesday we will learn and know more about who we are and where we are headed. With  the high taxes, rise in violent crime, and rampant incompetence at both the City and the BOE, I am sure that many will be heading out of Plainfilelf if things don't get better in the Queen City.

This week will be a test. It will show rather or not Plainfield is going to rid this community of cowardly politicians.

The recent mailer attacking the daughter of a candidate shows that we have at least one that is still in power.

WILL THOSE ELECTED TO UPHOLD THE LAW FOLLOW IT?

As I said before, it wasn't personal. But now it is the law.

Any BOE Member that was convicted of certain crimes cannot serve as a member of the Board of Education. And it is not about whether one likes the person or not.

The law is the law.

Will our elected officials at the BOE show leadership and respect for the law?

According to  today's Courier News, it appears that this will not be the case.  You can read the article for yourself at http://plainfield.injersey.com/

How much time and money will be spent on fighting something that was unanimously passed into law by our elected officials? I waited until the Bill was signed and for the person that may be affected to honorably step down.

Service to this community as described in the very same article does not have to come as a BOE member. Here again is the double-standards mentality that is shown by the new Board Majority. In the article, the BOE President has also seemed to take a position as the leader of the Board that is critical of the law that she was elected to uphold. This would clearly put the BOE at odds with Assemblyman Jerry Green, those who voted unanilmously for it, and  the Governor who signed it into law.

What does  the Board say to a teacher or administrator if they adopt a policy or rule that may affect current employees? Disregard the policy or rule? I think not.

This is the democratic process at work. This is what makes this country great.

It seems that Mr. Abdull Haqq was no stranger to breaking the law when he was caught and convicted of possessing heroin, this after having two disordely persons offense. By my count, that is three separate brushes with the law by Mr. Abdull Haqq---three strikes for a member of the Grand Slam Team. Three strikes always means out.

Mr. Abdull Haqq can still hit a home run in the area of leadership and respect for the law. He can show respect for the law and a sense of honor and duty that he may have shown during his service in the Army by respecting and upholding the law.

He can do this by stepping down.