The Willow Glen Resident

Letters

Real estate ads push the boundaries of Willow Glen

I believe that it is the duty of the Willow Glen Resident, as well as the San Jose Mercury News, to factor a little honesty into the real estate advertisements for homes in "Willow Glen." To put it honestly, most are not. Close scrutiny of these advertisements will show that homes really in Old Willow Glen are selling for $100,000 to $150,000 more than the homes actually across the street from the borderline. The real estate people know this but still persist in this dishonest advertising. I recently saw a home advertised as being in Willow Glen, "a short walk to Pruneyard." Can you believe it? For a true picture of the real Willow Glen, consult the map on page 33 of The Willow Glen Neighborhood by April Hope Halberstadt. Willow Glen and San Jose are still far removed.

Robert L. Smith
Cottle Avenue

Booksin parents play instrumental role in academic success

Congratulations to an outstanding community of students, parents and teachers whom I proudly and publicly applaud. Based on the recently published STAR 9 academic test scores, Booksin Elementary is the best in Willow Glen. During the past 10 years, I have been one of many active parents involved in the pursuit of progressive academic programs and resources for the students and teachers at Booksin. These test scores prove that we successfully provided resources and programs in reading, math, language and spelling.

Unlike the San Jose Unified School District, the Booksin community philosophy has not limited academic instruction to one subject. We have striven to provide students with resources to enhance all subjects, including visual and performing arts, reading, math, science and history. Each day a minimum of 30 parent volunteers assist in the classrooms full time, hosting Art Vista instruction, operating the library, administering the accelerated reading program and providing instruction in the computer lab, science lab and life lab.

The Sharks in the Parks program, instructed by parents, supplements our P.E. curriculum. The Kodaly music teacher, Janice King, provides a wealth of instruction not only related to learning to read music but also supporting history, and reading and math skills. Miss King directs Booksin's choir, the only choir remaining in the SJUSD's elementary schools.

In addition to grade-level curriculum requirements, teachers such as Pam Hays (fourth grade), Donna Yamada (fifth grade) and Jim Tobler(fifth grade) donate their personal time each year to work with students on historical plays, the school newspaper and the school yearbook, respectively. All the programs mentioned above are provided on an annual budget of $100,000 from school fundraisers and $65,000 from Site Improvement Plan (SIP) funds. Booksin does not receive any Title I funds. Volunteer time and a commitment to quality personnel are the keys to Booksin's success. I encourage all parents to be involved in promoting new academic programs through their school's SIP, where parents and teachers democratically decide what programs can supplement the districts generic curriculum. Ask your principal for a copy of your schools SIP plan and budget. Don't let your School Site Council be a lame-duck organization. Be proactive and be a resource! Booksin school's test results prove parental involvement is the key to success.

Carmen Nicholls
Briarwood Drive

San Jose Unified's STAR scores don't shine too brightly

The book titled Always Running by Luis Rodriguez has prompted a recall attempt against three San Jose Unified School District trustees. The Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) scores at San Jose Unified were very poor, and more money than ever is filling the district's coffers.

The test scores at Broadway High School [an alternative campus located in Willow Glen] for grade 11 were: reading, 18; math, 15; language, 26; science, 15; and social science, 31. I believe these are test scores of children who are functional illiterates. Will a diploma from Broadway mean anything? Are we dumbing down our children? Are we more concerned that our children feel good about themselves? We seem not to care that they can't read, write, add or speak. Social promotion must be stopped.

It appears that the trustees and administration at San Jose Unified are more concerned with collecting tax moneys for these children than they do about the education our children receive. The collapsing of standards by approving books that are pornographic, racist, sexist, murderous and [show] disrespect for authority--such as Always Running--is an indicator.

Some of the most abysmal inner-city schools are to be found in high-spending districts such as Washington, D.C., and Hartford, Conn., which spend more than $9,000 a student, far above the San Jose Unified average. With San Jose Unified, the problem is not lack of funds but poor use of the funds available.

For San Jose Unified to address the plight of our schoolchildren, it will be necessary to bring about an educational system with an incentive structure that encourages responsiveness to parents, efficiency and effective decision-making. I still support separating the Willow Glen schools in order to provide a better education for our children.

Michael Johnson
Jonathan Avenue

The Avenue could do with just a little bit of elbow grease

During a recent visit to Lincoln Avenue, I decided to sit on one of the streetscape benches and read the latest copy of The Resident. When I got up, the bottom of my light-colored shorts was now considerably darker, the result of a large amount of dirt on the bench.

In addition, there was a sizable amount of garbage and cigarette butts around the bench, a nice deposit of unsanitary bird droppings where I had been walking and many garbage cans that were dirty, overflowing and in need of repainting. Several of the sycamores still have weeds around them.

Who wants to patronize a business district that looks like this? I don't. To this end, I would like to see the Willow Glen Business and Professional Association make cleanliness on The Avenue a high priority.

While the WGBPA should put on big events like Founders Day and the street dance, it should also put the same amount of time and energy into addressing issues like cleanliness and pedestrian safety on The Avenue.

June Cooley
Almaden Road

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