Its Official. Ron Behrenwald was hired by Cedar Springs Public Schools at last night's CSPS Board Meeting. Thanks for everything you did for the Marshall Public Schools. A true class act, and an unbelievable leader.
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73 comments:
Congratulations Mr. Behrenwald! You have been a great Principal! Always caring, hardworking, honest, respected, competent, cooperative, supported-- unlike your boss! It is a big loss to Marshall that you are leaving. Everyone wishes things had been different. You deserve much better!
Ron Behrenwald and his family... more victims of the terrible reign of Joyce Phillips. Shame on the school board for allowing her to treat you so badly and unprofessionally!
Would Ron stay if he were promoted to Superintendent?
That would be a great idea! Can we do it?
Maybe Mr. Vought would reapply at MHS?
If we successfully get rid of Joyce then maybe Mr. Vought or another excellent person can get the job at MHS. There is still hope as of noon Wednesday that the school board is still working on Joyce's removal. Keep hoping this happens! Then hope will return to the Marshall schools. Many great things will be possible.
GOOD LUCK MR. BEHRENWALD! WE WILL ALL MISS YOU!
Ron Behrewald and his family have been a great asset to our community. They have been very involved and truly care about our students. They will be missed greatly! I hope we can find a replacement as good as them.
I can't believe Mr. Behrenwald is leaving. How awful! I bet it is because of Phillips.
Ron, you're a great guy and an excellent Principal! Losing you is losing some of the real "excellence" we have in Marshall.
I am saddened to be losing such an excellent Principal, but happy that Ron has a new opportunity. We all know the the "evil doctor" is the cause of our great loss. Good luck Ron!!!
Behrenwald is a man of honor, kindness, intelligence, fairness, strong leadership, compassion, honesty and integrity. No wonder he did not get along well with Dr. Phillips. Opposites rarely work well together.
When Phillips forces someone out they are always replaced with someone less qualified, less dedicated and less talented.
Mr. Behrenwald you were awesome when I attended MHS! It is a big loss to Marshall that you are leaving.
Ron will be missed by the MHS staff and our families. He and his family were an integral part of everything that is good in the Marshall Schools.
I would not have said this 3 years ago - back when I had great pride in saying I work at MPS. Now I say to the Behrenwalds: God Speed - you are going to a far better place than this. Please pray for us in our struggle to move backwards to where we were before joyce phillips!
Leadership is... what Ron Behrenwald does everyday at MHS! He will be greatly missed.
What Leadership is NOT... what Joyce Phillips does everyday. Why wasn't she fired? Something smells rotten in Marshall!
Maybe Ron Will Have Openings For Those Who Want A Better Place. I Agree That I Am Confused At Outcome , But I Am Sure The District Couldnt Afford To Buy Out Contract.Lets Look At All Sides Before We Spout Off. 3.8 Is Not As Good As In Past. At Least There Is An End In Sight. I Have A CALL Into Vic To Ask Him His Thoughts.
Posting Above
Finally Some One With Sense. Admin Team Gave Joyce A 4.6. Board Gave 3.8. Must See Problem. Tom Duffy Came Out Said Things Were Better. No One Ran Against Vic Or Janice. Low Attendance At Review.Equals A Few Hot Heads. Cedar Springs Might Have A Job Fair.I Know Most Board Members Want Whats Right And Buying Out Contract Is Not Right.
Lets All Talk To Vic Or Who Ever And Get Facts Then Grumble.
The admin team of Amy, Mike and Brian? You may have had Joyce fill it out herself, or did she?
The school board knew very well the very long list of major problems caused by JP. If they do not want to buy her out then just fire her. The MPS staff gave her a 1.7, and that was when they liked her a little. A fair evaluation would have been at or below a 2. Why does the board tolerate so much lying and bad leadership? What about "excellence" which JP is the opposite of? Is there something we do not know? Is the board working on another plan to send her packing to Indiana? If so, let us know and it may dilute the mass anger happening all over Marshall.
Admin gave Joyce a 4.6 because she got to choose which administrators she wanted to evaluate her.
3 administrators were not given the opportunity to evaluate her as they had in the past. Another 3 sent in protest votes which weren't counted. The 4.6 was a fabricated number. The board was aware of this. Not all board members are living on another planet. John, possibly Chris and possibly Ali are the only ones who have been asking any questions. The others need to go!!!
If What You Say Is True Then Why Didnt 3 Fill Out Bad Review For Joyce.14 Passed Out. 11 Returned. Who's At Fault.
Good luck Ron! I doubt they will find someone as "excellent" as you who will also put up with all of the crap that you had to deal with from Phillips and the board. You always did put the kids first.
I agree that bad numbers might have been better but our board President doesn't recognize anonymous surveys....why fill them out? They should have been zeros.
If you are a building Principal on Jps hit list and you are one of a handful of people who fill out an evaluation on JP that is going to Paul, Vic and Janice, would you commit suicide by writing anything negative on it? Would they care if you committed suicide?
I get it! Good point, and no they wouldnt!
I thought the anti-Phillips people were making a lot of this stuff up when I first started reading this web site in November. Now as one thing after another comes true, I realize they have been right about Phillips all along. Losing Mr. Behrenwald will be a big loss for MHS. Thanks Phillips!
To the post above at 9:03am: I have just a couple simple answers for your simple statements.
The superintendent strategically planned her eval while all the MHS and MMS teachers were scheduled to be in conferences 4-6 pm...they can't just get up and run out of conferences as you see they do put kids first - NOT ALL PARENTS LEAVE CONFERENCES ON THE EXACT MINUTE IT IS OVER...SOME WERE STILL VISITING WITH TEACHERS AT 6:15. This is no different than how she made sure not all administrators were allowed to fill them out. Food service yes, grounds/maintenance yes, bus garage yes, Director of Alternative Education - no (guess he doesn't administer a building or something), Director of Shamrock Center - no (once again not part of the global network of MPS....whatever) Her hand picked favorites were allowed and those that did fill them out somewhat favorably - did so out of fear. WE BROUGHT THIS PROBLEM TO THE ATTENTION OF THE BOARD LAST FALL - IT WAS PROVEN THEN THAT THE EVALUATION PROCESS OF THE SUPERINTENDENT IS NOT JUST NOR FAIR - BUT IT WAS USED ONCE AGAIN.
To your other (not your first) dumb statement of 'a few hot heads'. The handful of employees that were at the eval were in silent attendance of their not having a contract since july 06. Amy Jones continues to try to tie things onto a very simple request for a letter of agreement until june 07 for the same 1% 1% that all others received this past year (except jp and her chosen disciples). Lots of that group works 2nd shift and could not be at the eval (or they must work 2nd jobs in addition to their school jobs).
My last statement to you is this: How can you gauge disgruntled employees by observing from the outside? You look foolish by making that kind of statement. Before this blog started I had absolutely no clue what a blog even was let alone how to comment or read one. So I am guessing that about 10% of the community knows or has ever used a posting/message board such as a blog site. Ask the Chronicle how many posts to their site. It is more a teenager thing and us older folk had to learn about this informational tool. This is not any type of indicator of the amount of upset employees under the 'ruin of terror of the undoctor'. I hope you can begin to seek more information before passing juvenile judgment on 300 employees that 98% of them feel this superintendent is bad for MPS. Evidently some still do not understand.
Why doesn't the board run a survey of the entire community - if every household put in $10 maybe we could buy her out of the next 2 years that the five members on the board locked us into!!!!!!
In case you did not know it, you were replying to Vic's posting at 9:03. He is the only one I know who writes his e-mails capitalizing every word. Apparently he posts on here the same way.
I see that Vic posted at 8:23 above too, apparently he is planning to call himself. ;-)
Good luck Ron! Have a great spring break! I hope you got a big raise! Another big loss to Marshall! :-(
I heard the rumors and postings for months but didn't want to believe it could be true! I knew the Behrenwalds were planning on a longterm stay in Marshall a few years ago. Their kids go to school with my kids.
I blame Supt. Phillips! She is very bad for the Marshall Public Schools. I wish it were she that was leaving and not the Behrenwalds.
If that is Vic posting with the first-letter capital words above, so be it. I am glad he is reading and getting involved on this blog. From what he shared it looks like the Marshall school board did in fact consider a buyout. That is good in that we now know the school board does not really want Joyce Phillips around but feel they are stuck with her. Vic and the school board, let's all keep working together to pressure her to resign or build a case to force her out.
You can start by looking at tapes, starting with last June's school board meeting, to see all the times she was not truthful or upfront with the school board. I am guessing a case can be easily built against her. Talk to the school lawyer or another lawyer to see what can be done. Ask Behrenwald as he leaves if he has any evidence of bad management invovling Joyce. If he shares what he knows he can probably write a book on it. Two more years of Joyce Phillips will be very bad for all of us!
Nice article on Ron Behrenwald in the new Chronicle out this weekend. He did a great job and had JP not pressured him out he would have stayed around for many years to come.
I am so saddened that we are losing Mr. Behrenwald just because of Mrs. Phillips. The wrong person is leaving. A very sad day in Marshall!
Mr. Behrenwald has always been a class act! We will all miss him and his family very much!
What a great loss to MHS! Marshall will be lucky if they can find another Principal anywhere near as good as Mr. Behrenwald.
Mr. Behrenwald is a first-class Princpal. He embodied excellence at Marshall High School. He will be missed by all. I agree, it will be hard to find someone as good to replace him. I blame Joyce Phillips for this big loss and her board supporters. They should be ashamed of themselves for allowing such bad behavior from oour Superintendent.
Ron was an adequate principal but has become more of a martyr than anything else. I certainly like the new assistant principal and some of the discipline reforms she has put in place to control the students. Ron wasn't in on that hiring and maybe that was a good thing. His first assistant wasn't very strong. However, let's not make Ron into some amazing, bigger than life administrator. Remember, he still answers to the Supt and if she didn't like him there had to be a reason. He isn't independent answering to the teachers or public.
Since the Superintendent does a pretty bad job and supports Metcalf and Jones who are also way subpar, I do not put much credibility into Phillips not liking Behrenwald. We all know she was out to remove him from when she arrived. Ron did do a very good job without the suppport of the Supt. or the school board, far better than Phillips does. Phillips should be leaving, Ron should be getting her job.
I have been suspicous about many strange things that have been occuring these last few years in the Marshall schools. Did Marsha Haring (Frank) want Behrenwald, Cable, Hulkow, Townsend, etc gone for not supporting her bid to be the Superintendent? It was mighty suspicous when she befriended Joyce Phillips as soon as she moved to town, even putting her up in a condo. Many think that is one of the main players behind many of the things Phillips is doing, along with Potter, Darling, Beardslee and maybe Stulburg. Was Phillips given a hit list when she arrived? Why have these people all complained that Phillips has treated them badly from the day they met her? Is this all revenge for who-knows-what reasons?
To three posts above:
I think Ron Behrenwald was much more than "an adequte principal". I have heard one veteran teacher say more than once that Ron was the best principal they ever worked for. Does that mean that there were never any conflicts between Ron and the staff? Of course not. Ron is not perfect, no principal is. But I think he was very well respected by the teachers, the support staff, the students and the parents. He had some tough issues to deal with during his tenure and handled them very professionally. I am sure there are people out there who have had issues with Ron; but I have never heard anyone challenge his character, his integrity or his professionalism. Sadly, I cannot say the same for the superintendent.
TO: what is really happening?
I doubt if we will ever know the total truth about all the politics involved in creating the mess in the Marshall schools at this time. But you have certainly raised an interesting issue. From what I heard, Marsha Haring was on Jeff Cable's case from the moment she became assistant superintendent. Did she have some sort of personal vendetta against him? Who knows? They worked together as principals in Battle Creek; and Jeff's first wife was her secretary for a number of years, and Jeff was hired by Lou Giannunzio.
Go to the library and check out an article on page A3 in the June 9, 2003 Enquirer. In it both Marsha and Bob Currie publicly criticize Lou for running for the board. I think it is highly unusual for a superintendent and/or an assistant superintendent to take a PUBLIC position on a school board race. I cannot recall it ever happening in another district. And it is not at all uncommon for retired school administrators and teachers to serve on the boards of districts where they used to be employed. (Harper Creek had a former superintendent on its board for a number of years.) They did not just privately criticize Lou's candidacy, Mr. Curry implies that if Lou were to get elected to the board, he might not continue as superintendent.
Lou did not get elected; but Bob Currie left in three months anyway. A new superintendent is hired a few months later, and her first target is--guess who Jeff Cable.
One would think that a brand new superintendent, especially one who was not from the area, would have spent a few months just observing how things were going, getting a feel of the district before she went after one of her principals. But from what I heard, Jeff felt she was out to fire him from day one. This certainly would support the idea of a "hit-list."
And one last thought, in one of the articles about the type of superintendent the district was looking for in 2003, one of the board members said they he wanted someone who was going to be with the district for a long time. Joyce Phillips was 57 years old when she was hired, enough years of experience in Indiana to retire. Five years in Marshall was all she would need for a Michigan retirement. I can't believe anyone thought she was really going to stay long-term. Makes the "hit-list" theory seem even more plausible.
Bob Currie sure got a sweetheart deal too after his short tenure. They put into his contract that he would get full Supt. pay for each sick day he does not use when he leaves, about $400 per day. BUT they did not stipulate that this should only apply to his time as a Supt. so when Bob decided to leave after less than two years he cashed in 18 years fo sick days at $400 each, I think about $70,000-$100,000! WOW! Was this a huge blunder or was it a payoff for some "anti-Lou" dirty work? Why is Marshall Haring (Frank) still so involved with the Marshall Schools long after she "retired"? Why did she befriend Joyce when she got here and is known to also be working very closely with at least Potter, Beardslee, and Darling to plan the agenda and make many major decisions for the Marshall schools? Is dirty politcs going on in the Marshall schools? Or is the school board incredibly naive, fooled and out-of-touch with reality? I doubt the latter.
What a mess that fiasco was! Will the Marshall Public Schools ever get back to "normal"? Why do we have so many big problems at the highest levels? We can't afford to keep declining in this era of school competition. When the top leadership is bad, it is much harder for everything else to go well.
The Class of 2005 is deeply saddened by the departure of Mr. Behrenwald. He always put the kids first and was an overall great Principal!
I am in my 50s and I can tell you Ron Behrenwald has been the best boss I have ever had. He is not perfect. But he listens, reasons and administers. He has the highest values and ethics possible. He is an example of what we are trying to teach our young generation each and every day. His departure from marshall will be felt for many years. I will predict he will be the Cedar Springs superintendent within 5 years. I am sure there are districts outside of Marshall that recognize and utilize such incredible examples of leadership. I surely hope the undoctor gives Ron the Golden Apple Award next fall for all he has personally done for this community, the students, and the employees of Marshall Public Schools.
The BC Enquirer has a very nice article about Ron Behrenwald in today's (April 11th) edition. He talks very fondly about his experiences at MHS and leaves open the possibility of returning (maybe as Supt? - hopefully soon). It also talks about how well-respected he is and what a sad loss it is for Marshall. Paul Beardslee praises Ron, which if this is how he truly feels, he has obviously turned against Joyce in relation to Ron. We all know that Joyce treated Ron very badly and that a few pro-Joyce school board members encouraged this and were also very hostile towards Ron. How sad and what a great loss for Marshall.
Ron Behrenwald will be greatly missed. He is a class act in a district where that is missing at the top levels. He will be hard to repalce with someone at least as good.
I am glad he left the door open to possibly return as the Superintendent someday. We need a new one now.
If you are angry that an excellent Principal like Ron Behrenwald was forced out by a very bad Superintendent Joyce Phillips, then please vote "NO" on the school bond on May 8.
We need to fire Phillips first and this would help a lot. We can vote in a bond after she is gone, hopefully soon. A vote for the bond will be viewed by the school board as a vote of confidence in Phillips. Also you can write in Sam Ramon and Bob Lyng (or anyone else) in place of Phillips supporters Vic Potter and Janice Darling during the same election. The Marshall Schools are in serious danger and Joyce Phillips needs to be removed before we can truly unite and work together for positive improvements!
Has anyone checked with the county clerk's office to see if you can write in a candidate who has not declared to be a write-in candidate? The deadline for filing as a write-in is the Friday before the election (April 27). Can you still write someone in (more as a protest than a valid vote) if they have not declared to be a write-in candidate?
Post this in the top subject on this blog where most people may see it. I hope we get two good write-in announced candidates. I am not sure about the rules. Anyone but Potter and Darling! The schools are in a serious crisis because of them.
Good bye Ron, you will be greatly missed!
A great loss to MHS!
Good luck Ron!
What an awesome change Cedar Springs is from Marshall. A school board that does what they are elected to do. A superintendent that really has the interest of the district in their heart. A cooperative leader who does not try to deceive the administrators, teachers and support staff. I guess I am just alittle jealous of the Behrenwalds. Sounds to me like they are going to a district like Marshall was before Joyce, Amy and Brian. Remember Brad and Lou and even Bob Currie? They had their own children in this district and they really did care about the 'excellence in education' that this district was always striving towards. My anticipation level is ANXIOUS for Marshall to be able to return to what we used to have: Honesty, integrity, respect, cooperation. When will that be?
Well sign up for Saundra's lunches with Joyce at MHS and find out what fun and surprises are in store for MHS and the entire school district for the next two "lame duck" years.
Who would want to have lunch at MHS with Joyce after she forced out Ron Behrenwald, an excellent Principal far better than herself? Why would anyone want to reward her for being so bad towards MHS?
Good luck Ron! We wish it was JP leaving.
Mr. Behrenwald was always a high dedicated and excellent Principal during his years at MHS. Its too bad the school board and the Superintendent did not recognize this and let nasty politics by Joyce chase him away. Shame on you for doing this! Vote NO on the millage May 8th! We can pass it when Joyce is gone.
Thanks Ron for all of your hard work, integrity and dedication to the kids and staff!
Can anyone see a problem with the policy change that gives the superintendent sole responsibility for the building administrators. All she needs to do is give an administrator 2 negative performance evaluations in a row and they have a ruined career in thier futures. She does not have to stand accountable for these evals. What was wrong with the check and balance of the board overseeing the evaluations of these administrators? Now - this is alot like leaving the fox in charge of the henhouse. Phillips -solely handling their livelihood! I am only surprised that we have had only Ron and Susan looking elsewhere. I am guessing everyone else is going to ride out Hurricane Phillips - and hope to not be amonst the devastation she leaves in her path.
Phillips is out to fire everyone who is better than she is!
That leaves, let me think, everyone?
What a shame. The Behrenwalds are real people, with feelings, hearts filled with caring, compassion. Let's put the human element into what philly has done to Marshall Schools. I am sure Cedar Springs Schools will be thanking Marshall for years to come. This asset (Ron) joyce has given to them is beyond comprehension.
This family has youngsters who are beginning their school years. How can this board allow the unidoctor to harm families like this but still sing about Kids First. Or, Let's keep the main thing the main thing....well folks...in my perspective the Main Thing is Kids which equals this supt. harming families with kids. Can someone on the Board please respond. How did the board justify what the supt. has done to this family. It seems you have taken the 'kids first' out of the Behrenwald situation. Do you see what Ron B. has done here? He is putting Kids First....he is keeping the main thing the main thing. In order for tranquility for his family, in order to put his kids first, in order to keep the main thing (his family life) the main thing...he has had to leave Marshall.
How about putting kids first and moving Marshall forward....isn't that the job of elected board members? It is time for us to stand up for what this community really cares about. (quoting Chronicle May 15, 2006) (Bob Lyng recommended only a one year contract for phillips) Janice Darling: "Giving her the two years is giving her the trust that the job she's doing is the right job." Vic Potter: (disagreed with S. Ramon saying) "he thinks the employees would be happy we believe in our leader."
Now, that was one year ago. Think about all the lose she has caused this school and community. Please - someone on the board make some changes. Remember "Leadershis is about change.... (I will quote jkp) "You see, I too welcome opportunities for change!"
In remembering how important change is to phillips - let's remember she encourages change. Change is what this community must have ASAP....not in 2.5 years. Let's move Marshall forward. Then we can pass a bond.
JP victims no. 97- Ron Behrenwald and his family.
Keeping Joyce and losing Ron is a big double-blow to the Marshall schools. MHS morale has taken another hit and the entire school district will have to struggle for two more years of problems, scandals and controversies caused by Joyce's many blunders.
There goes the best administrator we had. We lose the good ones and keep the bad ones. WHATS UP!!!!!
Blame the school board! The clique that supports Phillips has also been carrying out their hit list of many excellent people in the Marshall schools. They also target the MTA, the support staff and any community critics of JP. This clique is doing great harm to the Marshall schools. Is it all revenge for petty grievances? That's what the evidence seems to point to.
What a shame - it appears the old money in Marshall is actually running MPS through the Hoosier Queen. How did we let things get to this point - but better yet - how do we get this once wonderful school district back to where we were before Phillips? Lou did not let money make the decisions for him. I suspect 3-4 or his disgruntled 'marshes' in the past have come forward and become the micromanagers of joyce phillips. I cannot wait for her to leave so those of us that truly love this community (and don't throw our money around to buy what we want in politics) can start to heal from this terrible attack on our beloved system.
After months of very stressful looks - all Mr. B does now is smile. Us students are happy for him but sad for ourselves. The Cedar Springs Redhawks gain is THE MARSHALL REDHAWKS TREMENDOUS LOSS! joyces turn will come
Dear Mr. Behrenwald:
If the Marshall School Board comes to their senses and does the right thing and fires Phillips, would you consider coming back?
We know that the evil Joyce Phillips made your life he** and forced you out for no good reason (thanks board for more dirty politics). I do not blame you for leaving, many good people are considering that option too. Excellence has been on the decline and is nonexistant in the top leaders. We are doing our best to get Phillips repalced! Thank you for your hard work, dedication, caring and overall "excellence"!
We will all miss you and your family very much!
MHS Staff, Students and Parents
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