PERRY LOCAL SCHOOLS GET ATTACKED BY THE EXTREME RIGHT WING. IS STARK COUNTY FERITLE GROUND FOR THESE ATTACKS?

 

Stark County's Perry High School a bastion of political intrigue on behalf of President Barack Obama?

 

Such an assertion belongs out there in koo-koo land in terms of national blog Atlas Shrugs suggesting that the Perry Local School District being is in on Organizing for America's effort to recruit young Americans to its cause.

It should be disturbing to Stark Countians that fringe politicos have shown up on the Stark County landscape in recent months.

This is the second intrusion in recent months into local education operations by outside national organizations operating through local mediaries.  

Back in August, 2009 an organization dubbed The Freedom from Religion Foundation (Foundation) out of Madison, Wisconsin went after the Lake Local Schools.

An except from Edd Pritchard's (The Repository) piece, Lake Local Schools asked to drop "belief in God," August 28, 2009 summarizes the Foundation's problem with Lake, to wit:

Stark County education has enough problems without these diversions coming into play.

Of the two, the Atlas Shrugs is the most troublesome.  

Why?

Because the SCPR's take on this group is that its adherents "see"  political apparitions.  

Yours truly has read through the Atlas Shrugs blog on the Perry school situation and there is practically nothing about Perry and its actual handling of a mistake.  The blog is almost totally about Organizing for America.

One may disagree with the Foundation, but it is dealing with a real phenomenon.  Lake's mission statement, at the time, did invoke God.

So the SCPR does not tab the Foundation as being fringe.  Atlas Shrugs appears to qualify as "fringe" to The Report.

Nevertheless, both activist groups have an agenda on  things non-education and they constitute a diversion from what schools are primarily about.

The SCPR applauds both Perry and Lake school officials for concentrating on educating Perry and Lake's children, while the politicos do their best to distract them.

IS IT TIME FOR GOD START WORRYING? LAKE SCHOOLS GIVING UP THE FIGHT FOR GOD? WILL NORTHWEST'S WILLIAM STETLER WEIGH-IN?

Back on August 28th The Repository reported that the Freedom from Religion Foundation asked Lake Local Schools to drop a reference to valuing God from its values statement.

The SCPR started a series on surveying Stark County schools value statements to determine whether or not Lake was indicative of what Stark County schools were doing with their value statements.

Although The Report did not get through all 17 districts, it is apparent that Lake was the exception and not the rule in including God in its mission statement.  Here is a link to the Stark County Education Report (as sister blog to the SCPR) so readers can see the results of the survey which covered schools alphabetically through and including Minerva schools.

It was beginning to look as if the Lake schools was going to buck the Freedom from Religion Foundation and stand up and fight for God.

Sorry to say, The Repository had a story in yesterday's online edition reporting that Lake was changing its values to take God out.

"What is this world coming to," must be the thought going through the mind of God this 15th day "in the year of our Lord" 2009!

Likewise, Northwest superintendent William Stetler must be shaking his head in disbelief.

Stetler?  Why?

Well, Stetler was Lake superintendent from 1996 through 2007.  And one of his major contributions to the Lake system (in the opinion of the SCPR - Lake is The Report home since 1975 and three Olson children graduated from Lake) is a restoration of God into the Lake Schools.

In a previous blog, the SCPR likened Stetler to Johnny Appleseed as a spreader of not "appleseeds," but God into the Lake, if not the Stark County school system.  Here is the link to the previous blog.

Defending God does has its limits.

Here is Mary Ann Kannam's (Rep reporter) account of the travail at Lake:

Hmm?

WHY DOESN'T EVERY STARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT VALUE GOD? THE SCPR COMPARING STARK'S 17 SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND THEIR MISSION STATEMENTS: TODAY - MINERVA

So far in the SCPR survey of Stark County school districts, only Lake and Louisville have a direct/indirect reference to God.

This leaves out Alliance, Canton City, Canton Local, Fairless, Jackson, Marlington, Massillon  and Minerva (the home of the Lions).

Of 10 school districts in Stark County surveyed (done by scrutinizing their websites or by response from the district's administration)  by the SCPR so far in this series,  out of a controversy generated by a few Lake residents (Lake is the SCPR's home area) in a complaint to the Freedom from Religion Foundation over Lake's use of God in its mission statement; 8 make no reference to God; direct or indirect.

A whopping 80% ignore God in their misson/values/vision statements.  Only Lake and Louisville (sort of) stand for God in their public statements.

While this blog is published on both the Stark County Political Report and the Stark Education Report, the best place to keep track of which school districts do or do not have any kind of reference to God in their mission statements is at the Stark Education Report.

WHY DON'T ALL STARK CO SCHOOLS VALUE GOD? SCPR COMPARES STARK'S 16 OTHER SCHOOL DISTRICTS ' MISSION STATEMENTS TO LAKE: TODAY - JACKSON

A couple of Lake Township residents contacted the Freedom from Religion Foundation with complaints about a part of Lake Local School's Mission Statement. Lake is the home district of the SCPR and three Olson children graduated from Lake and the Mrs. served on the Lake Board of Education twice.

The first thing that occurred to yours truly is how the mission statements of Stark's other 16 school districts compare to Lake's.

Today we compare Lake"s controversial statement to that of the Jackson schools
God appears to be missing in Jackson Local school's mission.

So far the SCPR has examined the mission statements of Alliance, Canton, Canton Local and Fairless and Jackson schools. None mention God in their mission statements.

Who has it right: Lake or Alliance, Canton, Canton Local, Fairless and Jackson?

WHY DOESN'T EVERY STARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT VALUE GOD? THE SCPR COMPARING STARK'S 17 SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND THEIR MISSION STATEMENTS: TODAY ALLIANCE

A couple of Lake Township residents contacted the Freedom from Religion Foundation with complaints about a part of Lake Local School's Mission Statement. Lake is the home district of the SCPR and three Olson children graduated from Lake and the Mrs. served on the Lake Board of Education twice.

The first thing that occurred to yours truly is how the mission statements of Stark's other 16 school districts compare to Lake's.

Today we compare Lake"s controversial statement to that of the Alliance City schools.

No mention of God in Alliance.

Why not?