delaforum
	July, 2007 Access previous month's Memos

PARTICIPATION SOUGHT: Brandywine School District is inviting residents to join the committee charged with recommending a plan for closing some school buildings. "The district must make the closures in a responsible, well-studied way and must involve community members and parents in the development of a plan," superintendent James Scanlon said in a public statement. The committee will convene on Sept. 4 and is due to report in May, 2008. The district has room in its schools for about 1,400 children, but enrollment is just over 10,000 and expected to decline to about 9,600 by 2014, he said. (CLICK HERE to read previous Delaforum article.)

¨   ¨   ¨

FINAL SAY: Delaware Supreme Court evidently has closed the book on the saga of the stone wall. It ruled that the Board of Adjustment had proper jurisdiction when it overturned an order by land use general manager Charles Baker directing Edgewood Village l.l.c., an affiliate of Pettinaro Construction, to restore the wall in the Paladin Club condominium community it partly demolished in early 2005. Baker said the wall was historic although the department's historic preservation section earlier had decided it wasn't. The court ruled against a  group of residents who said the appeal should have been made to the Planning Board. (CLICK HERE to read previous Delaforum article.)

¨   ¨   ¨

County Council by its narrowest margin enacted an ordinance eliminating the requirement that the Department of Land Use advertise public hearings in community newspapers.

Joseph Amon, publisher of Community News, testified before the seven-to-six vote on July 24 that the move would deprive "close to 200,000 readers," who depend upon the publication's five zoned editions as their best source for "fair and balanced" local news, of information that is important to them. He implied that the ordinance was one of "many attempts to influence the printed word." Councilman George Smiley, who sponsored the ordinance, replied that it "is not retaliatory legislation in any way." He said that its intent is to save county government $172,000 a year in light of its budget problems.

He said he was not against press coverage. "As much as I hate to say it, we'll still support the News Journal," he said. State law requires that paid-for legal notices be published in a newspaper of general circulation. Councilman Bill Bell said he was surprised to learn that the department did not provide for that spending in its fiscal 2008 budget. "If it's not in their budget, haven't they already decided it" before Council acted, he said. Smiley said the money was not budgeted because the county administration assumed that since Council had cut its own legal-notices requirements "we would not be doing less" for the department. (CLICK HERE to read previous Delaforum article.)

Voting in favor of the ordinance were: Smiley, Council president Paul Clark, Penrose Hollins, Joseph Reda, Timothy Sheldon, Jea Street and David Tackett. Opposed were: Bell, John Cartier, Stephanie McClellan, William Powers, William Tansey and Robert Weiner.

¨   ¨   ¨

PLAN APPROVED: County Council on July 24 unanimously approved an updated comprehensive plan which significantly changes the approach to land use and development in New Castle County during at least the next five years. "It's a vision. The next step is crafting implementation strategy to make it a reality," said Council president Paul Clark. Councilman Robert Weiner described the plan represents "a transition from a sprawl comprehensive plan to a smart-growth comprehensive plan." David Tackett called it "the most scrutinized document ever to go through any Council." (CLICK HERE to read previous Delaforum article.)

¨   ¨   ¨

REZONING SOUGHT: Legislation to rezone the 17-acre Holy Rosary church and school campus to permit American College to develop a portion of it was introduced into County Council by Councilman John Cartier on July 24. Council will vote on it after the Planning Board holds a public hearing and makes a recommendation. In another matter involving Claymont, Council unanimously approved a measure appropriating $60,000 received from the Delaware Land & Water Conservation Fund to finance improvements to the driveway, signage and landscaping at Woodshaven-Kruse park. (CLICK HERE to read previous Delaforum article.)

¨   ¨   ¨

The state's student-testing program is meant to measure students' performance against standards, not against their counterparts in other districts, James Scanlon said.

Commenting on just-published 2007 results, the Brandywine superintendent told the school board that they show continuation of  measurable progress during the past six years. "It doesn't matter what other school districts are doing; it matters what we're doing here in Brandywine," he said at the board meeting on July 23. "The big challenge now is how do we get to the next level." Third- and fifth-grade scores "started high [in 2002] and have stayed high," Scanlon said. Middle schools are "relatively high ... with modest gains" over that time period. High-school scores "started out at a low point and have made significant gains."

He said the annual testing produces objective data with which to measure both trends and individual performance. "We have to make sure we're using the data to make individual students grow," he said. "We have to believe that all kids can learn. We have to set high expectations for all students if we want our kids to meet high standards. ... We need to provide professional development for our teachers to make that happen." Noting that Brandywine originally outpaced state averages on the tests, board member Debra Heffernan said that shows "the [rest of the] state has caught up with Brandywine." (CLICK HERE to read previous Delaforum article.)

¨   ¨   ¨

CONTROVERSIAL TRANSFER: Over the vehement objections of several Harlan Intermediate School teachers and some parents, the Brandywine school board confirmed the appointment of Lincoln Hohler to be principal of P.S. du Pont Intermediate. Former Harlan principal Anita Thorpe was brought out of retirement to succeed Hohler in that position in an acting capacity while a permanent successor is sought. The moves were necessitated by the unexpected resignation of P.S. principal Kenneth Goodwin. The Harlan delegation argued that 14 years as a popular teacher and administrator has made Hohler a virtual fixture at that school.

Although he said he appreciated their sentiments, James Scanlon said that "as superintendent, I'm looking out for the entire school system." With P.S. about the spend the coming academic year in the Burnett building while its north Wilmington building is renovated, there is need for "a strong leader to help us with that [and] Linc Hohler is the best person to do that." As spokesperson for the delegation, Leeanne Henretty, a parent, protested against the board's accepting Scanlon's recommendation without open discussion and evidently agreeing to it during a closed-door executive session before the public meeting.

¨   ¨   ¨

REJECTION: Delaware Department of Transportation has rejected a proposal to designate Philadelphia Pike as an historic highway, Delaforum has learned. In a previously unpublicized early-June letter to County Executive Christopher Coons, Maria Andaya, manager of DelDOT's scenic and historic highways program, said that, although the road has retained its original alignment since colonial days, it lacks "a special intrinsic quality" deemed necessary "to provide a [sic] unique travel experience to residents and visitors." The decision, she said, "proved to be difficult," requiring more than two hours of discussion by the evaluation committee.

¨   ¨   ¨

REPORT CARD: Brandywine results generally followed the pattern of other school districts in this year's state assessment testing with a slight gain in reading, a decline in mathematics and significant improvement in writing. In reading, 79.9% of Brandywine students in grades two through 10 met or exceeded state standards, up from 79.2% last year. The proportion in math fell from 71.4% in 2006 to 71%. The bigger gain was in writing, where 70.6% came up to the standards this year, compared to 66.8% last year. Statewide, 80.5% met or exceeded standards in reading; 69.3% in math; and 65.7% in writing.

 

Percentage of Brandywine district students meeting or exceeding state standards:

 

		Reading				Mathematics				Writing
Grades	2007	2006	Pct change		2007	2006	Pct. Change		2007	2006	Pct. Change
2	82.76	83.26	-0.6%		86.66	86.94	-0.3%
3	81.56	81.99	-0.5%		76.36	77.33	-1.3%		69.07	65.64	5.2%
4	78.29	75.73	3.4%		73.23	76.17	-3.9%		54.47	68.61	-20.6%
5	82.97	82.09	1.1%		78.19	75.57	3.5%		67.47	53.78	25.5%
6	77.20	80.25	-3.8%		69.55	72.37	-3.9%		73.59	51.10	44.0%
7	86.14	80.28	7.3%		72.47	68.88	5.2%		68.38	61.21	11.7%
8	79.71	82.63	-3.5%		68.99	69.28	-0.4%		81.99	78.11	5.0%
9	72.89	73.81	-1.2%		52.00	56.30	-7.6%		75.30	75.72	-0.6%
10	77.79	72.62	7.1%		61.49	59.79	2.8%		74.27	80.24	-7.4%
2-10	79.92	79.18	0.9%		70.99	71.40	-0.6%		70.57	66.80	5.6%
SOURCE: Delaware Department of Education

 

How schools fared in their respective key grades:

 

Schools	2007	2006	Pct. change		Schools	2007	2006	Pct. change		Schools	2007	2006	Pct. change
3rd grade reading					3rd grade mathematics					3rd grade writing
Lombardy	92.11	> 95.0			Lombardy	83.91	90.36	-7.1%		Lancashire	82.42	77.38	6.5%
Brandywood	88.24	88.79	-0.6%		Lancashire	83.52	82.14	1.7%		Brandywood	74.07	75.83	-2.3%
Lancashire	87.64	93.83	-6.6%		Carrcroft	80.58	76.79	4.9%		Mt. Pleasant	71.43	66.96	6.7%
Mt. Pleasant	82.47	80.37	2.6%		Brandywood	77.98	87.70	-11.1%		Lombardy	71.26	85.37	-16.5%
DISTRICT	81.56	81.99	-0.5%		DISTRICT	76.36	77.33	-1.3%		DISTRICT	69.07	65.64	5.2%
Carrcroft	80.81	85.32	-5.3%		Mt. Pleasant	75.78	72.17	5.0%		Carrcroft	64.08	67.86	-5.6%
Maple Lane	71.70	85.92	-16.6%		Forwood	72.15	66.67	8.2%		Forwood	63.29	45.56	38.9%
Forwood	71.43	66.67	7.1%		Maple Lane	63.16	82.19	-23.2%		Darley Road	57.14	34.78	64.3%
Darley Road	63.64	50.75	25.4%		Darley Road	61.22	56.34	8.7%		Maple Lane	55.36	61.64	-10.2%
5th grade reading					5th grade mathematics					5th grade writing
Claymont	90.03	87.79	2.6%		Claymont	84.97	79.22	7.3%		Claymont	77.38	61.24	26.4%
DISTRICT	82.97	82.09	1.1%		DISTRICT	78.19	75.57	3.5%		DISTRICT	67.47	53.78	25.5%
P.S. du Pont	77.83	76.81	1.3%		P.S. du Pont	75.23	74.80	0.6%		P.S. du Pont	61.29	51.85	18.2%
Harlan	76.84	80.22	-4.2%		Harlan	70.33	70.68	-0.5%		Harlan	58.24	44.5	30.9%
8th grade reading					8th grade mathematics					8th grade writing
Springer	84.00	85.71	-2.0%		Springer	74.92	77.78	-3.7%		Springer	87.04	80.63	7.9%
Hanby	81.69	88.55	-7.7%		Hanby	73.82	78.68	-6.2%		Hanby	86.03	81.68	5.3%
DISTRICT	79.71	82.63	-3.5%		DISTRICT	68.99	69.28	-0.4%		DISTRICT	81.99	78.11	5.0%
Talley	69.49	73.02	-4.8%		Talley	50.84	50.69	0.3%		Talley	64.61	72.22	-10.5%
10th grade reading					10th grade mathematics					10th grade writing
Concord	85.67	75.11	14.1%		Concord	71.09	60.43	17.6%		Concord	86.64	85.53	1.3%
DISTRICT	77.79	72.62	7.1%		DISTRICT	61.49	59.79	2.8%		DISTRICT	74.27	80.24	-7.4%
Brandywine	75.65	75.25	0.5%		Brandywine	58.44	66.45	-12.1%		Brandywine	73.04	81.33	-10.2%
Mt. Pleasant	68.81	66.36	3.7%		Mt. Pleasant	50.99	50.00	2.0%		Mt. Pleasant	57.71	73.15	-21.1%
SOURCE: Delaware Department of Education

 

How Brandywine compared to other districts:

 

District	Reading		District	Math.		District	Writing
3rd grade
Smyrna	92.13		Indian River	89.43		Milford	83.55
Milford	91.85		Caesar Rodney	86.49		Appoquinimink	81.99
Indian River	90.15		Smyrna	86.39		Caesar Rodney	79.06
Appoquinimink	89.65		Milford	86.31		Smyrna	77.47
Caesar Rodney	86.01		Appoquinimink	85.31		Christina	76.91
Christina	82.81		Lake Forest	80.94		Indian River	74.54
Capital	82.75		Christina	79.58		BRANDYWINE	69.07
Lake Forest	82.61		Seaford	78.23		Woodbridge	67.52
BRANDYWINE	81.56		Cape Henlopen	77.97		Capital	66.24
Seaford	80.28		Capital	77.47		Lake Forest	65.00
Cape Henlopen	79.38		BRANDYWINE	76.36		Cape Henlopen	64.41
Laurel	79.17		Laurel	74.38		Colonial	58.20
Red Clay	77.01		Colonial	70.67		Red Clay	53.35
Colonial	74.82		Red Clay	70.18		Seaford	46.12
Woodbridge	70.13		Woodbridge	65.82		Laurel	43.04
5th grade
Milford	94.53		Indian River	90.33		Indian River	74.26
Smyrna	93.38		Caesar Rodney	87.32		Appoquinimink	73.93
Indian River	92.36		Milford	86.27		Caesar Rodney	73.01
Appoquinimink	90.63		Appoquinimink	82.19		BRANDYWINE	67.47
Caesar Rodney	89.79		Smyrna	82.11		Colonial	62.69
Cape Henlopen	87.34		Cape Henlopen	81.20		Cape Henlopen	62.11
Lake Forest	87.29		Lake Forest	79.39		Christina	60.25
Colonial	84.81		BRANDYWINE	78.19		Smyrna	58.77
Red Clay	84.36		Woodbridge	75.46		Milford	57.70
BRANDYWINE	82.97		Seaford	73.23		Red Clay	56.30
Woodbridge	82.31		Christina	72.31		Seaford	56.13
Seaford	81.86		Red Clay	71.67		Lake Forest	54.57
Christina	81.43		Colonial	71.61		Woodbridge	50.62
Capital	71.70		Laurel	66.08		Capital	40.95
Laurel	61.84		Capital	61.90		Laurel	40.00
8th grade
Appoquinimink	92.27		Caesar Rodney	76.62		Delmar	87.93
Caesar Rodney	91.94		Indian River	75.59		Appoquinimink	87.67
Indian River	91.31		Lake Forest	74.14		Caesar Rodney	87.56
Milford	88.43		Appoquinimink	72.00		Indian River	83.10
Cape Henlopen	87.97		Milford	70.11		Laurel	82.63
Delmar	87.95		BRANDYWINE	68.99		Milford	82.58
Lake Forest	86.35		Delmar	67.24		BRANDYWINE	81.99
Smyrna	82.35		Cape Henlopen	66.28		Colonial	81.06
Red Clay	81.49		Red Clay	62.93		Capital	77.19
Colonial	80.52		Smyrna	59.38		Cape Henlopen	76.38
BRANDYWINE	79.71		Laurel	52.88		Lake Forest	76.10
Christina	74.07		Seaford	51.82		Christina	73.97
Woodbridge	74.05		Colonial	50.05		Red Clay	73.58
Capital	73.65		Woodbridge	47.97		Woodbridge	70.95
Laurel	72.62		Christina	47.19		Seaford	63.24
Seaford	69.85		Capital	46.41		Smyrna	60.63
NCC Votech	52.17		NCC Votech	7.69		NCC Votech	56.00
10th grade
Sussex Technical	90.22		Sussex Technical	75.70		Sussex Technical	75.00
Caesar Rodney	83.49		Appoquinimink	70.46		BRANDYWINE	74.27
Milford	83.41		Caesar Rodney	69.84		Red Clay	73.75
Delmar	81.69		Red Clay	66.56		Caesar Rodney	73.12
Appoquinimink	81.05		Cape Henlopen	63.16		Polytech	71.86
BRANDYWINE	77.79		Delmar	62.84		Appoquinimink	70.76
Red Clay	77.76		BRANDYWINE	61.49		NCC Votech	70.12
Polytech	75.52		Smyrna	61.00		Cape Henlopen	65.85
Cape Henlopen	75.11		Indian River	60.94		Milford	64.71
Indian River	73.40		Polytech	60.34		Seaford	59.31
NCC Votech	72.27		Milford	59.91		Christina	59.00
Seaford	69.23		Laurel	59.17		Indian River	58.95
Smyrna	67.81		NCC Votech	54.51		Capital	57.78
Laurel	65.77		Seaford	50.00		Laurel	57.63
Capital	65.12		Capital	45.95		Delmar	56.76
Lake Forest	63.82		Lake Forest	44.50		Smyrna	56.43
Colonial	62.38		Woodbridge	42.45		Colonial	55.90
Christina	58.81		Colonial	41.47		Lake Forest	52.79
Woodbridge	57.14		Christina	40.61		Woodbridge	42.86
SOURCE: Delaware Department of Education

¨   ¨   ¨

SIGN DECISION: Faced with an apparent irresolvable conflict between two key elements of the Claymont

¨   ¨   ¨

CORRECTION: County Council will not vote on a proposed ordinance providing hometown zoning for Centreville at its session on July 24 as Delaforum previously reported. Before Council can act, the ordinance must go before the Department of Land Use and Planning Board for recommendations. The Planning Board has scheduled a public hearing on the ordinance on Aug. 7. It is likely to go before Council in late September or early October. (CLICK HERE to read previous Delaforum article.)

¨   ¨