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Post by Jennifer C on Jun 14, 2019 22:05:08 GMT
IMHO, the student sounds frustrated and done. I took my kids out of a local school district that slowly imploded. I think if I hadn't , my dd could possibly be the one making that speech.
Recent history includes embezzlement, ineptitude, and overall horrible decision making. The state has already taken over control of 3 campuses and plans basically run the whole district by the time they are done.
School board was removed several years ago due to overall incompetence and neglect. Many cases of theft and other illegal activities from the school board down to the certification of teacher's came to light once the state investigated. The Vice Superintendent plead guilty of embezzling 4 million dollars, most of it from co enrolled students and booster clubs. Teacher's that were permanent substitutes were teaching higher math classes at one school without a math degree. They built a massive football stadium without voter ok and I understand that it is sinking in one corner. Someone smudged the soil tests so they could hurry the project along before the voter's put a stop to it. The schools, from elementary to high school, were in disarray because the people in charge were up to no good and sweeping everything under the rug.
If the Valedictorian for this district would of stood up and made news with her airing of dirty laundry, maybe the local ISD wouldn't be on the verge of going bankrupt. Everything going on was an open secret but someone always had someone's back and until the State of Texas started investigating, then it became front page news.
Jennifer
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Post by myshelly on Jun 14, 2019 23:48:00 GMT
I think she’s brave.
She’s basically a whistleblower. She wanted to change the school for the better 🤷🏻♀️ I don’t get why the peas are so bitter about it.
I say good for her.
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sassyangel
Drama Llama
Posts: 7,456
Jun 26, 2014 23:58:32 GMT
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Post by sassyangel on Jun 15, 2019 0:10:53 GMT
Damn. All I could think of while reading that was this. As far as this possibly affecting her in the future.
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sassyangel
Drama Llama
Posts: 7,456
Jun 26, 2014 23:58:32 GMT
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Post by sassyangel on Jun 15, 2019 0:15:08 GMT
I don't see her as a snowflake, but a very frustrated student who felt powerless watching incompetence and lack of accountability surrounding her. FWIW, this school falls within the Sweetwater Union School District which has been mired in corruption for years with multiple felony and misdemeanor charges resulting in jail time for the previous administration. The current administration is facing a state audit and SEC investigation related to financial misconduct. I’d be interested if it brings any additional changes, as a result. Maybe it was just enough for her, that she spoke her truth. Sounds like a school district to avoid. I think this additional info does add some context, I’m just not sure that future employers will have that additional context if it shows up in a background search.
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Post by wordfish on Jun 15, 2019 1:39:41 GMT
She was the VALEDICTORIAN and was treated this way by the guidance counselor? Wow.
I say good for her. She sounds more mature than the adults whose job it was to help her maximize her potential. That took some serious chutzpah.
One of my kids was told by her guidance counselor that she would never get into the school she wanted to attend. I think it's in the top 15 schools in the country in most rankings. She laughed at my kid.
Guess who got into the school? My kid. She got a full scholarship, plus 3 or 4 other scholarships on top of the full ride. The counselor tried to walk it back but it was too late. My kid got the most scholarship money of any kid in her graduating class.
The same guidance counselor was later arrested for a DUI.
I dunno. Some school systems foster this kind of crap and it sounds like this girl's school system was one of those.
Good for her. If she finds it follows her around, which I sincerely, sincerely doubt will happen, she can change her name a little and boom. No more search results.
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Post by janskylar on Jun 15, 2019 13:14:14 GMT
I would have done the same thing regarding the guidance counselors at my high school if given the opportunity back then. I think it is wonderful that some of you have positive things to say about your kid's school's GCs, but that was not my experience.
I scored a 33 on the ACT with no prep classes or anything in the fall of my Junior year. I was actively discouraged by the head GC from taking the SAT. She would not give me the forms to fill out, and told me that I needed to go to a college in our state. "Wouldn't you rather be a big fish in a small pond?" She didn't care that my answer to that was no.
My senior year, I found out that there was a scholarship for which I was qualified that would pay all of my tuition and a small stipend each year at one of my potential schools. I went to the GC office the day I needed to mail everything in for a copy of my transcript. A different GC spent at least 5 minutes giving me grief for not having done this sooner. She was just plain mean about it, calling into question my intelligence, and I felt terrible while I sat there and waited for her to print it out for me. Then her daughter walked in. Here's how their conversation went. Right in front of me.
Daughter: Mom, today is the deadline to send in my app to take the ACT on the date I wanted!
Guidance Counselor Mom: Oh, don't worry about it. Here's what you do. Don't seal the envelope. Go to the post office, and it to them, and as soon as they stamp the postmark, tell them "Oops, I forgot to add something" and get the envelope back. That way you can send it whenever and the postmark is by the deadline date.
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Post by ktdoesntscrap on Jun 15, 2019 15:30:35 GMT
She could have written a letter to the School Board, Superintendent and Principal expressing those concerns. Of course, if she was looking to get her 15 minutes of fame, I guess she succeeded. She could have. but I don't think she was looking for 15 mins of fame I think she grabbed an opportunity to be heard and used it. I think she could have done it differently but I don't think she was trying to get famous. I think she wanted to be seen and heard.
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The Great Carpezio
Pearl Clutcher
Something profound goes here.
Posts: 2,973
Jun 25, 2014 21:50:33 GMT
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Post by The Great Carpezio on Jun 15, 2019 15:52:29 GMT
Nope. Not ok.
This Is not the appropriate time or place. Yes, this might be the worst school district ever, but she also might be a drama queen with a chip on her shoulder.
Should the “employee of the year” be able to stand up at the holiday party and rip on the boss and office staff?
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The Great Carpezio
Pearl Clutcher
Something profound goes here.
Posts: 2,973
Jun 25, 2014 21:50:33 GMT
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Post by The Great Carpezio on Jun 15, 2019 15:54:46 GMT
Nope. Not ok.
This Is not the appropriate time or place. Yes, this might be the worst school district ever, but she also might be a drama queen with a chip on her shoulder.
Should the “employee of the year” be able to stand up at the holiday party and rip on the boss and office staff?
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trollie
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,580
Jul 2, 2014 22:14:02 GMT
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Post by trollie on Jun 15, 2019 15:56:56 GMT
Nope. Not ok. This Is not the appropriate time or place. Yes, this might be the worst school district ever, but she also might be a drama queen with a chip on her shoulder. Should the “employee of the year” be able to stand up at the holiday party and rip on the boss and office staff? If the boss has been hitting on her and staff members are coming in drunk, sure. Why not?
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The Great Carpezio
Pearl Clutcher
Something profound goes here.
Posts: 2,973
Jun 25, 2014 21:50:33 GMT
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Post by The Great Carpezio on Jun 15, 2019 16:16:55 GMT
Nope. Not ok. This Is not the appropriate time or place. Yes, this might be the worst school district ever, but she also might be a drama queen with a chip on her shoulder. Should the “employee of the year” be able to stand up at the holiday party and rip on the boss and office staff? If the boss has been hitting on her and staff members are coming in drunk, sure. Why not? What if her coworker was drunk, got in trouble and was taken out by the police four months ago? Does it bear repeating? The hitting on her is not an equivalent. What if SHE doesn’t like the bosses style or thinks he/she is inefficient or not a good boss? Is this really the appropriate time? Especially if it is a celebratory party/event? I don’t want my own coworkers going rogue and taking every chance at the mic to bitch about real or perceived slights. It’s awkward and not the appropriate time or place.
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The Great Carpezio
Pearl Clutcher
Something profound goes here.
Posts: 2,973
Jun 25, 2014 21:50:33 GMT
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Post by The Great Carpezio on Jun 15, 2019 16:27:04 GMT
I think it is a dangerous precedent to set and it concerns me that so many of are ok with this.
So now every valedictorian speech becomes the next kid trying to outdo the other by being “edgy” and a “whistleblower” so they can become the next viral cool kid?
I mean, who can’t come up with a laundry list of real and perceived faults of our bosses, coworkers, jobs, school experiences? Who can say, with 100% assuredness, that YOU, haven’t been the cause of someone’s real or perceived gripes? You want to be on the other end of that with no chance to defend yourself in a very public venue? Especially at the end of a teenager’s rage?
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Post by mom on Jun 15, 2019 16:44:43 GMT
I think it is a dangerous precedent to set and it concerns me that so many of are ok with this. So now every valedictorian speech becomes the next kid trying to outdo the other by being “edgy” and a “whistleblower” so they can become the next viral cool kid? I mean, who can’t come up with a laundry list of real and perceived faults of our bosses, coworkers, jobs, school experiences? Who can say, with 100% assuredness, that YOU, haven’t been the cause of someone’s real or perceived gripes? You want to be on the other end of that with no chance to defend yourself in a very public venue? Especially at the end of a teenager’s rage? I agree. I also think she took a day that should have been 'for everyone' (the other graduates) and made it about her self. Her actions didn't just effect her + those she wanted to rip. Instead of focusing on the achievements of the class, no one is talking about that. Its all about her. I've been thinking about this. She flamed her counselors publicly. How many times have we heard Counselor Peas state they are over worked, not enough staff, to do their job? We've gotten one side of the story with this. I am sure the Pea Counselors wouldn't want publicly ripped. There is a time a place for things like this. This wasn't the time or place.
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The Great Carpezio
Pearl Clutcher
Something profound goes here.
Posts: 2,973
Jun 25, 2014 21:50:33 GMT
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Post by The Great Carpezio on Jun 15, 2019 16:47:49 GMT
I think it is a dangerous precedent to set and it concerns me that so many of are ok with this. So now every valedictorian speech becomes the next kid trying to outdo the other by being “edgy” and a “whistleblower” so they can become the next viral cool kid? I mean, who can’t come up with a laundry list of real and perceived faults of our bosses, coworkers, jobs, school experiences? Who can say, with 100% assuredness, that YOU, haven’t been the cause of someone’s real or perceived gripes? You want to be on the other end of that with no chance to defend yourself in a very public venue? Especially at the end of a teenager’s rage? I agree. I also think she took a day that should have been 'for everyone' (the other graduates) and made it about her self. Her actions didn't just effect her + those she wanted to rip. Instead of focusing one the achievements of the class, no one is talking about that. Its all about her. That was a red flag for me. Almost the whole speech is about me, me, me. No words of wisdom or discussion of the class accomplishments or memories. Just what she liked and didn’t like with some vague sarcastic “thanks for the lessons” comments.
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Post by 950nancy on Jun 15, 2019 16:49:45 GMT
I shared this story with my son (23) and husband. He asked my kid who he would have called out for his speech. My son paused a minute and said, "No one. I had good/great teachers and I felt like everyone supported me."
We took our son to a different district than the one we live in and I did worry about it sometimes since the district is not in a well-to-do area. It does have a good reputation for having caring, hardworking staffs, but you never know.
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Post by 950nancy on Jun 15, 2019 16:52:00 GMT
I agree. I also think she took a day that should have been 'for everyone' (the other graduates) and made it about her self. Her actions didn't just effect her + those she wanted to rip. Instead of focusing one the achievements of the class, no one is talking about that. Its all about her. That was a red flag for me. Almost the whole speech is about me, me, me. No words of wisdom or discussion of the class accomplishments or memories. Just what she liked and didn’t like with some vague sarcastic “thanks for the lessons” comments. I didn't hear the whole speech, but I thought it went off the rails midway, so perhaps she said what she had planned about accomplishments and memories and then veered off the rails. I have been to dozens of graduations and the speeches always always start off with memories and accomlishments and then go into the thank yous.
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The Great Carpezio
Pearl Clutcher
Something profound goes here.
Posts: 2,973
Jun 25, 2014 21:50:33 GMT
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Post by The Great Carpezio on Jun 15, 2019 16:52:48 GMT
I shared this story with may son (23) and husband. He asked my kid who he would have called out for his speech. My son paused a minute and said, "No one. I had good/great teachers and I felt like everyone supported me." We took our son to a different district than the one we live in and I did worry about it sometimes since the district is not in a well-to-do area. It does have a good reputation for having caring, hardworking staffs, but you never know. And I absolutely know, without a doubt, there are kids who feel they had a horrible experience at your son’s school. It’s a fact of working with adolescents and the public in general.
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Post by 950nancy on Jun 15, 2019 17:00:40 GMT
I shared this story with may son (23) and husband. He asked my kid who he would have called out for his speech. My son paused a minute and said, "No one. I had good/great teachers and I felt like everyone supported me." We took our son to a different district than the one we live in and I did worry about it sometimes since the district is not in a well-to-do area. It does have a good reputation for having caring, hardworking staffs, but you never know. And I absolutely know, without a doubt, there are kids who feel they had a horrible experience at your son’s school. It’s a fact of working with adolescents and the public in general. Of course. I worked in an elementary school and had kids pulled out of my class because I was too hard. I am sure dinner conversations at their houses were filled with how awful I was. I was never drunk or negligent though.
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The Great Carpezio
Pearl Clutcher
Something profound goes here.
Posts: 2,973
Jun 25, 2014 21:50:33 GMT
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Post by The Great Carpezio on Jun 15, 2019 17:07:31 GMT
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Post by leftturnonly on Jun 15, 2019 17:07:45 GMT
I think she made a bad choice, but I think the "haunting for the rest of her life" business is a bit overblown. In the past, yes, but our cultural norms are evolving and now this kind of action going viral often results in more opportunities, not fewer, for those people. I bet she'll be just fine. I'm just cynical enough to think she knows that too. I come from a career as a teacher and as much as I want to think this wrong and inappropriate, I would like to think that this will shake up that school to its core if it is needed. The principal and higher admin need to look at what was said and see if it was a kid gone rogue or a wake up call. I had a chemistry teacher in high school and he came drunk 2-3 days a week. He reeked of alcohol. I struggled in that class and think a teacher who was sober might have been a better fit for me. If she's the valedictorian, she's got her poop in a group, and I believe will find a place in this world regardless of her tell-it-like-she-sees it speech. I had an alcoholic 7th grade teacher who became abusive to the kids in my class. Fortunately, he was turned in. The administration left his intercom on so they could spy on him and gather sufficient grounds to fire him. DURING the school year. If the valedictorian had really tried to talk to the administration about the teacher and they had done nothing, then I have a completely different opinion about the right or wrongness of her speech than if she sat back all those years and did nothing but gossip with her girlfriends.
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Post by leftturnonly on Jun 15, 2019 17:10:40 GMT
I think it was inappropriate, but like Jennifer posted above, speeches here have to be turned in to administration and when you go off track, the microphone is turned off. I was surprised that didn’t happen. It sounds like the administration may be failing on multiple accounts.
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Post by 950nancy on Jun 15, 2019 17:12:38 GMT
I come from a career as a teacher and as much as I want to think this wrong and inappropriate, I would like to think that this will shake up that school to its core if it is needed. The principal and higher admin need to look at what was said and see if it was a kid gone rogue or a wake up call. I had a chemistry teacher in high school and he came drunk 2-3 days a week. He reeked of alcohol. I struggled in that class and think a teacher who was sober might have been a better fit for me. If she's the valedictorian, she's got her poop in a group, and I believe will find a place in this world regardless of her tell-it-like-she-sees it speech. I had an alcoholic 7th grade teacher who became abusive to the kids in my class. Fortunately, he was turned in. The administration left his intercom on so they could spy on him and gather sufficient grounds to fire him. DURING the school year. If the valedictorian had really tried to talk to the administration about the teacher and they had done nothing, then I have a completely different opinion about the right or wrongness of her speech than if she sat back all those years and did nothing but gossip with her girlfriends. After hearing all of the other things people have posted here about that district, it doesn't make me too surprised about the speech. And you are right, sho knows what was done, but she is obviously frustrated.
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trollie
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,580
Jul 2, 2014 22:14:02 GMT
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Post by trollie on Jun 15, 2019 17:14:27 GMT
If the boss has been hitting on her and staff members are coming in drunk, sure. Why not? What if her coworker was drunk, got in trouble and was taken out by the police four months ago? Does it bear repeating? The hitting on her is not an equivalent. What if SHE doesn’t like the bosses style or thinks he/she is inefficient or not a good boss? Is this really the appropriate time? Especially if it is a celebratory party/event? I don’t want my own coworkers going rogue and taking every chance at the mic to bitch about real or perceived slights. It’s awkward and not the appropriate time or place. Obviously, if you were to do this, you would do it on your way out. I doubt they would still employ you after doing something like that. Since I did not live this student's experience, or know the back story, I don't know if this was the time or place. Good for her for speaking up. This kind of crap usually comes out later.
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Post by leftturnonly on Jun 15, 2019 17:17:53 GMT
I don’t get why the peas are so bitter about it. Such an odd word choice, to assume people on a message board are bitter about one child's speech that has nothing to do with them. What you are ignoring are the cumulative years of real life experience the peas have. Enough experience to know that the person who has already made a public spectacle out of problems that may exist is more likely to be the person who will do the same thing to you or your company instead of working for a viable alternative to fix the situation. When people here are saying that this will follow her, they're telling you that if they were hiring for a job, this young woman would not be who they would pick. Bitter or not, that's real life.
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Post by pierkiss on Jun 15, 2019 17:32:15 GMT
Yes it went too far. It might be justified though. I would like to know if any of these issues were raised with admin before this speech? If they were, how were they handled? Obviously not to the satisfaction of this particular student.
Sometimes you have to make some serious noise to get things to change. The guidance counselor being unavailable and not forthcoming with scholarships is a huge deal to juniors and seniors.
I assume the alcoholic teacher has been dealt with by admin, and that steps were taken to ensure this doesn’t happen again. It should not have gotten to the point where police had to be called during school hours. Admin should have been notified and acted before it got to that point.
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Post by auntkelly on Jun 15, 2019 17:41:18 GMT
I don't like the fact that she had a captive audience and called people out publicly, blindsiding them, without giving them a chance to defend themselves. (Even though she didn't call out the counselor by name, it will be easy enough to figure out who he/she was).
I would love to hear the counselor's side of this story. He/she may very well be a lousy counselor (although I still say a graduation is not the time/place to address this issue). On the other hand, the counselor might very well say "She didn't show up for two appointments and then she got mad when she came by my office without an appointment and I told her I couldn't meet with her because I had a dental appointment. I offered to schedule another appointment, but she said she was too busy."
I would like to know if she previously tried talking to the counselor or the principal about her concerns. If she tried, and the counselor and the principal just ignored her, then I would be more sympathetic towards her.
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Post by leftturnonly on Jun 15, 2019 17:49:39 GMT
Yes it went too far. It might be justified though. I would like to know if any of these issues were raised with admin before this speech? If they were, how were they handled? Obviously not to the satisfaction of this particular student. Sometimes you have to make some serious noise to get things to change. The guidance counselor being unavailable and not forthcoming with scholarships is a huge deal to juniors and seniors. You know, now that I've had a moment to think, this was a high school speech. One of thousands happening across the country this time of year, and not exactly something likely to catch the attention of people not immediately in the area. (until now) Certainly, the audience was made up of people who either agreed with her claims or knew them to be untrue. I wonder how it's all gonna turn out for the school?
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Post by PenandInk on Jun 15, 2019 17:52:34 GMT
It looks like she is not the first: Graduation Speeches off the railsI was particularly impressed by the first video. The young man admits he didn’t deserve to be valedictorian. He made a lot of great points.
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sweetandsour
Full Member
Posts: 227
Jun 30, 2014 17:43:52 GMT
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Post by sweetandsour on Jun 15, 2019 20:04:33 GMT
She could have written a letter to the School Board, Superintendent and Principal expressing those concerns. Of course, if she was looking to get her 15 minutes of fame, I guess she succeeded. We don’t know that she didn’t do that. My son is a graduating senior who wrote letters to the board and superintendent back in January about the principal tolerating racist behaviour/bullying by the “golden children” and the super said there would be a healing circle, community service etc required by the racist ringleaders. You know what happened? Nothing. It was swept under the carpet. My son was also voted by his graduating class to speak at his graduation banquet and the admin reassigned him to another responsibility, probably afraid of what he would say in his speech. (He wasn’t that disappointed. He’s a guy who is a great debater and gives great speeches for academic purposes, but he’s very quiet and hates speaking if grades aren’t involved.)
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Post by bc2ca on Jun 15, 2019 22:02:01 GMT
I think it is a dangerous precedent to set and it concerns me that so many of are ok with this. So now every valedictorian speech becomes the next kid trying to outdo the other by being “edgy” and a “whistleblower” so they can become the next viral cool kid? I mean, who can’t come up with a laundry list of real and perceived faults of our bosses, coworkers, jobs, school experiences? Who can say, with 100% assuredness, that YOU, haven’t been the cause of someone’s real or perceived gripes? You want to be on the other end of that with no chance to defend yourself in a very public venue? Especially at the end of a teenager’s rage? I agree. I also think she took a day that should have been 'for everyone' (the other graduates) and made it about her self. Her actions didn't just effect her + those she wanted to rip. Instead of focusing on the achievements of the class, no one is talking about that. Its all about her. I've been thinking about this. She flamed her counselors publicly. How many times have we heard Counselor Peas state they are over worked, not enough staff, to do their job? We've gotten one side of the story with this. I am sure the Pea Counselors wouldn't want publicly ripped. There is a time a place for things like this. This wasn't the time or place. What is the right time and place? Sincere question, no snark.
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