The best marketing is to improve the schools performance. We received a letter from Woodland Hills saying they ranked in the lowest 15% of PA schools. How do you market that???

Maybe they should spend that $25,000 on an aid for the kindergarden class that has 30 students in it. #anotherwhsdfail

whoops.. aide. Darn autocorrect!

I can't blame any parent for aggressively exploring any and all options to get their children out of WHSD. In addition to the well-documented safety concerns, the district is ranked 480th out of 498 school districts in Pennsylvania for academic achievement. Dickson Elementary, Fairless Elementary, Wilkins Elementary, Edgewood Elementary, Woodland Hills Junior High School School and Woodland Hills High School are all among the 15% lowest achieving schools in the Commonwealth. To any caring parent, these statistics are alarming. Instead of constantly touting how many football players from WHSD are in the NFL, the district should be spending time, money and energy on improving the abysmal academic performance in its schools.

As a parent of a child that has left the district for another public school, I think there should be a focus on what is going in inside the classroom. My child's new school's curriculum and teaching methods are HEAD & SHOULDERS above what she received at Woodland Hills. As a Woodland Hills alumnus, I am embarrassed by what is going on in and out of the classrooms at WH.

Of course, hiding behind aliases or a cute nom de plume makes the weak feel strong to criticize. The media decides what is reported, like NFL players. Had any of you that commented attended the board meeting last night you would have heard me specifically say that the great messages need to get out other than the usual musical and football. They do have enough touters and don't need more. WHSD offers many thnings that the other public schools don't. Try to follow this example. "Other public schools" are like a convenience store owner and your child is the customer. The school district/taxpayers have to pay for whatever the customer wants from the store. All the schools have to do is feed/sell them things they want to eat. Candy and junk food that tastes good but isn't good for your long term health. Need more explaining? You are being sold a bill of goods that isn't good for you or your child. "Other public schools" are a business, pure and simple. You know why they don't have "other public schools" in Upper St Clair and Mt Lebanon? Has nothing to do with test scores or safety...the property they have to rent for the schools is TOO HIGH. It throws off the profit margin. Thats also why they pay unqualified teachers less. Its better for profits. Of course you knew all this already...right?

Joe, trying to twist the argument by implying that these criticisms are somehow unfair, untrue or not completely fact-based is ridiculous. To imply that USC, Mt. Lebo or other high quality districts in the region are running a profit-based scam is absurd. The real reason charter schools are not present in those areas is because there isn't a need and therefore no demand for them. I applaud your enthusiasm and willingness to promote WHSD, but quite frankly, you're blatantly ignoring very real and very serious problems with the Woodland Hills system. When over 96% of public school districts in Pennsylvania are producing better academic results than WH, that is cause for serious, and highly justifiable concern. To ignore that reality is not only absurd, it is reckless. These statistics aren't fabrications. They aren't the result of spin. They are data-supported fact. Simply put, WHSD is not a good educational environment for kids. Period. It is among the very worst educational systems in the Commonwealth. No parent should EVER be criticized for sending their children to other schools as long as this is the case, and it is high time WHSD held itself accountable for such shockingly poor performance.

Quite honestly, I don't have a problem with them spending on advertising. However, who is your target audience? I hope your goal would be to target the families that have already pulled their children out of WH in an attempt to show us what changes and improvements have been made. I don't think you can target people outside of the district and convince them to actually move to the area because of the school. I think you have to stop the bleeding first. One more thing, don't market it as "Where Diversity Works", that makes me want to pull my son out of the high school immediately. Focus more on things that matter like AP courses or other academic opportunities.

There simply is no arguing the failings of the WHSD, the data on safety and academics speaks far louder than any advertising campaign possibly could.

This is nothing more than using taxpayer money to try and dupe people into believing that the district isn't failing, in an effort to hold onto the children that are leaving. The goal is to maintain as much funding, and as many jobs as possible.

Mr. Lafferty, you have utterly failed to convince the reads here, and you will no doubt fail to convince any TV viewers to enroll their children in the WHSD. This is blatantly wasting $25,000 of taxpayer money.

Thanks Pat! I had the pleasure of sitting in on your son's AP Government class just yesterday and was thrilled over the lively discussion and superior knowledge of OUR students. Where Diversity Works is all about the diverse curricular choices, the diverse backgrounds and experiences of our CERTIFIED teachers and the exciting array of opportunities available to our student body. I'll never tire of saying that I am more than satisfied with our curriculum and teachers and my kids are safe and happy at Shaffer and the Junior High. Oh, and I'm a proud alum too.

Tara, I applaud your enthusiasm. However, I would like to hear you address the academic performance issues in the WHSD and what the plan is, if any, to address them? I believe you are on the district's Board, so assume you are actively involved in such issues. Are you suggesting, by your lack of mentioning or addressing that issue in your comment, that they do not exist?

"John Q", there isn't enough room for me to elaborate on all we are doing to address our proficiency on the once-a-year standardized tests. I am the Chair of our Curriculum C'ee and am very confident of what our principals and teachers are doing on a daily basis to prepare our students for what they will take on after 13 years in the WHSD. I have spoken to countless graduates who tell me that WH prepared them and even made their first year of college almost a "review". Students at Dickinson, Case Western, Pitt, Howard, Miami of Ohio, Duquesne . . I could go on. Commitment to the District like mine is not rare when you consider what many of our staff and faculty do, but what has become less the norm is a large cadre of involved parents. Every piece is needed and vital for overall student success.

Tara, you're still not addressing the problem. The fact is, the academic performance of the district is abysmal. I find it concerning that the Curriculum Chair would imply, essentially, that there is no problem. If that is indicative of the attitude of WHSD's broader leadership should we assume that because the problem is not acknowledged that it is not viewed as a concern? Therefore, nothing is being done to address it? Maybe I'm confused by your response, but it seems that your brushing this aside or implying that academic performance is strong, despite the data.

Mr. Lafferty, While it seems that others are challenging your attempts to market the distirct I for one applaude you. I often think of how great the total district would be if we the residents banded together and sent our chidren to OUR schools. Both of our children are Woodland Hills Graduates and are very successful young adults because of the education the received. They were both involved in extracurricular activities. Our daughter was the drum major her senoir year and our son was in the top of his class academically. The were both given school experiences that they might have not gotten at a pirvate school. I am a retired a public school teacher with 35 years experience in a nieghboring district. I have seen the effects of residents pulling out ther children from the schools for one reason or another and saw first hand the results on the community and property value. Why shouldn't we want OUR district to be the best? I am proud of the schools and we should work together to make us all proud. Woodland Hills has a lot to offer. To those who think the schools are a war zone they need to find out the truth. I think highlighting alumni on TV spots is sa great idea . I give you my support in your endever.

Yes, sir, you are confused. If you would like the detailed information that is too voluminous to list here, feel free to email me at reista@whsd.net and I will gladly outline the many instructional practices we have implemented to improve our once-a-year standardized test proficiency.

Tara, you're still not addressing the problem. The fact is, the academic performance of the district is abysmal. I find it concerning that the Curriculum Chair would imply, essentially, that there is no problem. If that is indicative of the attitude of WHSD's broader leadership should we assume that because the problem is not acknowledged that it is not viewed as a concern? Therefore, nothing is being done to address it? Maybe I'm confused by your response, but it seems that you're brushing this aside or implying that academic performance is strong, despite the data.

OK, so you're acknowledging, albeit in a vague way, that this is a problem. Glad to hear it, and that you're deploying plans to address it.

I know you think I, and the other commenters here, are piling on, but as someone who grew up in the district I am tired of WHSD dodging the issue and not owning up to this and other problems. The district needs to put aside the charade and own up to these problems. I, for one, believe this long-standing attitude of WHSD leadership implying that there aren't academic and safety problems is a major reason why they continue to exist in district schools. I'm not implying that WHSD's challenges are minor, but stubborn denial isn't going to fix anything.

Elizabeth, you hit the nail on the head. Exactly.

Elizabeth that number is $500,000 last year, sorry for the typo. Thank you Paul for your informed opinion and encouraging words. I understand the challenges we face and I pray too that more of our citizens take up the banners and the fight for our children's schools. Paul you pointed out a glaring contradiction in many of the things I have read here and hear from people in that they pull their kids our of schools and then complain when programs are cut and things can't be done. When kids go to another "public school" that takes a lot of $ out of the school district budget and then the same kids parents want to yell that enough isn't done.

I have no children in the district, I work as a volunteer and still people want to challenge the fight I have taken up as silly or fruitless. Others in the district might even criticize me engaging people on public forums like Patch.com. I welcome the exchange of ideas. Thoughtful people step up, proudly say who they are and engage in discussions that don't have to agree. Cowards throw stones from an anonymous distance and give no credit to those people in the schools every day doing the job.

Paul, as you can see most people just seem to fight the fights they think they can win, others fight the fights that need fighting. Our school age children need the latter an not the former.

I agree with statements on both sides of this argument. My experience, and that of my children, has NEVER indicated that they are in danger and that they are anything but safe. I find it very confusing that people keep bringing this up this and I believe is much more isolated than the media portrays.
That said, my kids are doing very well and I have great things to say about their teachers, but we need to deal with the issue of poor test performance. Granted tests often test how well you take tests! But it is the main mechanism we have for comparing schools and our test scores are not adequate.
I would encourage those who have experienced school in WHSD and decided to move their children to share why with the school board. Saying that it is "way better" elsewhere does not give us information. How exactly? What are you basing this on? We need to look at things critically and stop saying we are doing it well. I believe the science curriculum in the elementary schools is lacking (and I work in a science based field). Math, however, I think is quite good; my daughter is in 6th grade and learning algebra!! How can I complain about that?! My children have been given a variety of learning methods and fun ways to retain information. I applaud all of these efforts to engage our children. But I do think a major evaluation needs to occur and I think teachers and the available evidence in educational research need to be the main players in that conversation.

"Sue T", I'm sure in my spare time I could research the percentage of our students who graduate from college, the percentage who get jobs, the percentage who keep those jobs, etc., but once they are given the tools to move beyond their 13 years in the WHSD, I believe the rest is up to them. When my son and daughter go onto college, if they should fail, I will not blame Woodland Hills. Call me crazy. But don't call me a politician. :) I'm not nearly that smart. I'm just a volunteer who is holding onto her belief in public education because my kids are being challenged academically, they are safe and they are happy. If that makes me a cheerleader, so be it. I've been called worse! If you need any more specific information, I welcome you to email me at reista@whsd.net. If I don't have the answer, I will get it for you.

Joe and Tara,

Both of you are alumni, as am I. Saying that the overall quality of education, administration, faculty, student and parent within the district has declined over the past 15 years is an understatement. If you can not see that, you are blind.

Perhaps it is time for someone to challenge Hoots vs the Board of Education and try to disolve this once mighty merger, and have our kids go back to school with people from their own neighborhoods and socio-economic situations.

It has taken 30 years, but it is now clear that this merger is a complete and utter failure.

I think it is important to point out the fact that neither Joe Lafferty or Tara Reis, who is a district Board member and the current Head of Curriculum for Woodland Hills School District, are able to produce even one piece of statistical data to support their argument that there is no academic performance crisis in the district. The closest thing to actual data either of them can produce are Reis' reference to "conversations" she's had with district graduates who are currently enrolled at marginal colleges. Furthermore, she invites interested parties to take the conversation offline via her private email if they want specifics on what WHSD is doing to address their many problems.

Tara, let's have that discussion publicly. What, exactly, are you doing to remedy the academic failures of WHSD? Why are you implying that the district is doing all it can, and that the fault rests with parents or guardians?

Families and students are fleeing your district in droves. Nobody is buying the rhetoric anymore. Tell us, in honest and fact-supported terms, why they are wrong. Better yet, accept and admit WHSD's plainly obvious failures and commit....PUBLICLY....to delivering real solutions and provide specific detail about what those solutions are and any measurable results they have produced to this point.

As a parent of two Woodland Hills grads and an educator who does not work for the district nor hold any political position, I feel the need to put in my 2 cents at this point. Coming out of Woodland Hills, my daughter received almost a free ride at a private university for 4 years. My son is a Junior at Pitt and doing just fine. The lessons they learned in class and out of class, especially the diversity that they experienced, has served them well. My son was able to take advantage of the dual enrollment program with Point Park prior to going to Pitt and the effort by the WHHS administration to make that program work is commendable. For my money "diversity" is the issue. You either buy into its value (the workplace certainly does) or you don't. Culture clashes will always plague the district, that's a given based on its makeup. The resolution of those clashes on a daily basis is a life lesson that our kids experienced and understand and appreciate. I applaud the district, its teachers and administration for fighting the good fight and winning it daily. This district is providing its students with the tools to deal with real life issues way beyond the classroom. Education is more than books and test scores.

To those who suggest that WHSD should be dismantled and children go to their neighborhood schools., please explain just how those "neighborhood schools" will come into being? If we gave each municipality the District school tax collected, it wouldn't cover what would be needed for a neighborhood school. Folks move to an area expecting that educational opportunities for their children/children to be) exist. Considering each municipality would be need to provide buildings for school children from K-12th grade, hire and maintain a steady staff with benefits i.e., teachers, janitors, guidance counselors, administration, approve a curriculum, meet the criteria for special needs children and find enough citizens willing to serve on the school board--how do they envision that happening? What guarantee would there be that your "neighborhood school" would be able to meet all the expectations the residents would have? You can get the grad stats by emailing the High School Vice Principal. The universities and colleges that WHSD grads go to aren't "marginal". All the graduates that go colleges/Universities scored just as well on the SAT/ACTs, had the GPAs and extra-curricular portfolios competative enough to be accepted. Staying in college depends on academic preparedness, maturity and the ability to pay the cost.
The School Board is elected and determines how the District is run. Take turns with your neighbors and go to the meetings. Meet with them. Run for School Board.

Pat, you must be fairly new to the East Hills. The neighborhood schools reference is wistful and wishful thinking from those of us who remember Churchill School District, and Edgewood SD and even Swissvale SD. Those districts were delivering much higher quality education that WHSD is now following the highly controversial and negatively received merger that was forced on these communities back in the early 1980s.

Since the merger and creation of Woodland Hills SD, education quality in these communities has plummeted, real estate values are down significantly and hundreds of families have moved out of the district. Crime rates have skyrocketed. Student enrollment is down by more than 2,000 pupils since the merger, a 33%+ drop. Many people who were around at that time and experienced it first hand know full well that the merger has proven to be a colossal failure. And the results are getting worse, not better. The high school is now in 5th Year Corrective Action II.....5th consecutive year!! It is only meeting minimum requirements in 1 of 12 PA Dept. of Education metrics....failing in the other 11. Of the other 3 school districts (out of 43 total) in the county currently in Corrective Action, two are neighboring districts Penn Hills and Wilkinsburg. In other words, the East Hills has become an educational sinkhole in the past 30 years.

Yet the administration would have you believe there is no problem.

The point of my previous submission was, that all the wistful thinking of the good old days or talk of dismantling the District doesn't change anything nor offers any practical solution towards improving academics the District. WHY has "the East Hills has become an educational sink hole in the past 30 years"? Where are all the active caring citizens of all the WHSD communities who keep writing in? Folks have said they don't like what's going on in the District for over 20 years and the Board doesn't address their concerns yet I see very few new names on the ballot at election time. How many folks are willing to attend AND do attend school Board meetings and report back to other parents? Reading reports on how the school is failing, how about exploring A+ school workshops and learn ways to get the schools to improve? Know of practical solutions that can be done to turn things around, show up, stand up and speak up. I've lived in the District for 25 years and am aware of the history, problems and the impact of the WHSD. I'm aware of the successs of the District too. My children and most of their WHSD friends took AP courses, experienced the band, musicals, sports, science competitions, the National Honors society. They are University honors students. Now they write about now how going WHSD and having friends whose lives were different from theirs has given them an open perspective and has prepared them to go into world to make a difference. There's lots to do.

Well I think it is money well spent if it can highlight some reasons to give district schools a try or another chance. But Joe you will need to get a thicker skin because you are going to get a LOT of push back. What I think a lot of WHSD supporters aren't acknowledging is that many of the students who attend charter and private schools DID start out in Woodland Hills schools and their parents pulled them out for whatever reason. I think more effort should be made to find out those reasons and see if they can be corrected. It's not just based on rumors or things that happened in the past. I have kids in district schools and talk to lots of parents - they have real concerns based on real things that they have seen happen to their kids or other kids in the same school. Parents talk and compare notes on district schools and alternatives. With the opportunity scholarships grants coming this year and even more so next year many more parents will be looking at whether or not they want to pull their kids from district schools.

I was in 5th grade when the merger happened and I have to agree with John Q, it basically destroyed the better school districts of Churchill, Edgewood, and even Swissvale. The situation got worse and worse throughout the years because the parents from Churchill and Edgewood pulled their kids out of Woodland Hills due to lower education standards as well as for safety reasons.

I moved back to Pittsburgh 10 years ago and put my son in WH but removed him for 2 reasons:
- The students in his class were at least 1 full year behind where he was in his previous school in Florida, maybe 2 years
- Safety. He was constantly being bullied by little thugs in his class and on the playground and we got no resolution from the teachers or principal.

We put both of our children in Propel where they did great. Our daughter is still there and has been since Kindergarten

Now, that said, when it came to high school, we were not satisfied with the Propel system that my son was in for 9th grade. We pulled him out before 10th grade and re-enrolled him into Woodland Hills where he does take advantage of the AP courses, the sports, etc... We plan on doing the same thing with our daughter.

The problems at WHHS aren't all the schools fault, but they do have fault. Kids shouldn't be graduating if they aren't proficient. It's mostly a family/parental failure for not being involved. I go to open houses there and I rarely see more than 4 parents in the classroom.

I have to say that the discussion here is more informative than any school board meeting that I have ever attended. I would love to hear more facts and less emotional arguments. I understand that there are many successful graduates, great teachers and opportunites for AP classes in the high school in WHSD. This does not tell me anything about why I should ignore the failing test grades and poor graduation rate. This is our 3rd year with children attending school here and each of those 3 years I have looked at other schools, charter and private, debating on whether or not to take my children out of the district. We put our house up for sale while we considered moving to another district. Our house did not sell. Property values are decreasing every year and I blame the school district for it. We, unfortunately, can't easily afford private school and I really want my children to attend a diverse, public school, however I struggle each year to decide if I am doing the best thing for my children. If you want to spend $25,000 of our tax payer money, I would appreciate your putting back into the school. I quite frankly don't feel that hearing alums success stories tells me anything about why I should keep my children in this district. I would ike to hear facts and see a plan for exactly how things are going to improve.

Monica, I think the silence from Tara, Joe or anyone else in the WHSD speaks volumes. When pressed for hard facts and a substantive response to these legitimate questions, they cannot come up with a response. That tells me all I need to know and makes it easy to see why WHSD enrollment is plummeting. It is projected to lose another 800+ students in the next decade, making total enrollment just half of what it was when the merger occurred. Epic fail.

This article may not contain the hard facts that some of you want, but it is certainly a start.

http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/news/education/twice-as-many-allegheny-county-school-districts-failing-to-meet-ayp-goal-654050/

"The one bright spot reported so far in Allegheny County is in the Woodland Hills School District, which did not make AYP in 2011 but hit its targets this year and is designated as "Making Progress.""

District Supporter, this is a very flimsy statistic to put up in the face of the mountain of data plainly showing the WHSD is failing. The district is in 3rd year corrective action....the high school is in 5th year.

Those of you wishing to take an objective look at all of the data, instead of cherry picking can find it here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodland_Hills_School_District

Hi John Q, sorry you missed me but I was off fighting the good fight not heaving anonymous stones from your home of cowardice. So when your complaining the test scores tell the full tale but when they prove that WHHS is doing better they are flimsy? A hypocrite and a coward. Notice how the people who are positive and the people who are negative have anonymous IDs? Keep typing, that hole you're in is getting deeper. Ha Ha ha

Joe, I remember one Woodland Hills administrator once explained to a group of parents that the scores are a bit misleading in that it takes many more kids scoring near the top to pull up the scores at the bottom. I've always felt that the state should report the scores as the range of scores for each district so people can see that, yes, students are actually doing well in the district and, yes, there are students who still need help improving.

Instead of joining the discussion under an assumed name, why not do some research and then suggest a way for the district to improve? Anyone can complain. It take someone who cares to try to make a change.
Schools NOT making AYP in our county: Duquesne, McKeesport, Sto-Rox, Bethel Park, Clairton, Keystone Oaks, North Hills, Pittsburgh, Steel Valley,West Mifflin, Woodland Hills, Upper St. Clair, Fox Chapel,Mt. Lebanon, and North Allegheny did not submit all of their data. Think AYP is a good test? Probably not.
Public schools educate everyone. Private schools can select their students, so there will probably always be a difference.

As far as advertising, try these free places: bolgspot, twitter, facebook, you-tube, linked-in, press-releases, free websites. Also consider establishing a connection with specific media. If they know they can call you or email at any time and get information, they will.
Put up a few hundred dollars and I bet you can find some students to help you!!

Instead of joining the discussion under an assumed name, why not do some research and then suggest a way for the district to improve? Anyone can complain. It take someone who cares to try to make a change.
Schools NOT making AYP in our county: Duquesne, McKeesport, Sto-Rox, Bethel Park, Clairton, Keystone Oaks, North Hills, Pittsburgh, Steel Valley,West Mifflin, Woodland Hills, Upper St. Clair, Fox Chapel,Mt. Lebanon, and North Allegheny did not submit all of their data. Think AYP is a good test? Probably not.
Public schools educate everyone. Private schools can select their students, so there will probably always be a difference.