|
| Author
|
Post |
 
|
|
Biggie9
F L I N T O I D
|
Herb may live on Wolcott St but he doesn't own it, according to the tax records.
His wife has a house in Flint Twp. but he couldn't live there and be on the Flint School Board though could he? That house BTW, is not owned by them either, but by a lawyer who must represent Cleaves family interest [via son Mateen?] That person is located in Lansing.
So next time you see Herby "the little mean nothing", ask him if he actually invests in Flint's future by owning property?
And frankly, I don't think Wolcott St is the "north side" do you? More the near west side IMO. Its no where near Stewart/Pierson Rd etc.... |
_________________
Biggie |
|
Sat Apr 14, 2007 2:53 pm |
|
|
00SL2
F L I N T O I D
|
| He's been married three times in this county, most recently on 7/16/2005 to Juanita James (divorced from Frances and Mary). Mateen bought property in Western Hills in November of 2000; also bought a Sleepy Hollow Condo in Grand Blanc, May 2005. Register of Deeds provides clue why no property in HC name. |
|
|
|
Sat Apr 14, 2007 11:53 pm |
|
|
Biggie9
F L I N T O I D
|
quote:
00SL2 schreef:
He's been married three times in this county, most recently on 7/16/2005 to Juanita James (divorced from Frances and Mary). Mateen bought property in Western Hills in November of 2000; also bought a Sleepy Hollow Condo in Grand Blanc, May 2005. Register of Deeds provides clue why no property in HC name.
well lol, apparently white folks aren't the only people that Herbie"the little mean nothing" has problems with; couple of black women do too.
that would explain why no property in Herbie's name, keeps it out of the divorce decrees, or he's already lost it.
wonder if he blamed female apartheid on his marriage failures too? perhaps the cabal of east Court Street conspirators were to blame?
the Wolcott property is not in any Cleaves name; but the phone number is in Juanita's name for that address.
Fran lives at the Western Hills property, or at least did, last I saw her.
Interesting stuff. he is the doppleganger of the stereotypical racist overweight, undereducated southern sheriff of the 50s...take what he said to Attorney Terry ray; they would be almost exactly what Sheriff Bigot T. Blowhard would have said to blacks back then. Wonder if Herbie realizes at some level, that he has become the very same monster he rages against? Like the abused child becoming an abusive parent.......how sad and ironic.
yet we, society continue to bear the expense of such miscreants.
he needs to be stopped. before he can more damage to all the children of Flint's schools, regardless of race or creed. |
_________________
Biggie |
|
|
Sun Apr 15, 2007 12:37 am |
|
|
Biggie9
F L I N T O I D
|
| almost forgot to thank you old Saturn, for that intel. |
_________________
Biggie |
|
|
Sun Apr 15, 2007 12:39 am |
|
|
CrossSchoolBoard
F L I N T O I D
|
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Spent yesterday knocking on doors in Evergreen Estates. This is the neighborhood across from the Courtland Center (west of Center Rd., South of Court St.) This is a predominately middle class, African American neighborhood with many teachers, administrators and other people associated with the Flint Community Schools.
I tell ya – this door to door knocking stuff is actually kind of fun. You get a chance to meet some great people. Some of the highlights:
#1 Knocked on a door and an older gentleman answered. I immediately recognized him as one of my former educators at McKinley Jr. High (I attended there in 7th and 8th grade – around 1980-81). He didn’t want to open his door because he didn’t recognize me and didn’t know who I was. I said, “Hey – aren’t you Mr. _____, from Mckinley………..he said, “Yes, I retired from there a few years ago……….I said, “well you gave me a swat on my butt when I went there.” That immediately broke the ice and he stepped outside and we had a great 20 minute conversation about the “good ole times” at McKinley and the state of the current affairs of the district. His wife heard what I said about the “swat” and she immediately emerged from another room and announced, “You see Honey, he got swatted and he ended up with a doctorate! I told you they never should have taken spanking out of the schools!” We had a laugh over that.
Interestingly, he made the comment………”what I always ask anybody who is running for school board is ‘How much time do you plan on spending in the school buildings talking to the students, teachers and principals?” BINGO Mr _______! (please see my previous post regarding Board Member presence at school buildings)
#2 Knocked on a door and a man answered and immediately invited me into his home before I even had a chance to introduce myself (this if the first time this has happened). Either he knew who I was or he is just one heck of a trusting individual. Ended up being what I’ll call a Flint Icon. A man that I’ve heard many great things about, but never had the pleasure of meeting. He has been very involved with the Flint Schools for decades and it sounds like he will continue to be for as long as he can. I’ve asked two people about him since yesterday and they both couldn’t say enough great things about the man. He is the kind of person that I think of when I think of the Flint Schools. These are the people who have seen the system at its greatest. It’s their wisdom that we can’t afford to ignore as we try to rebuild/reform the system.
#3 I have a friend who lives in Evergreen estates who is a fairly popular local painter. I stopped by to say hi and let him know how he can help with the campaign since he’s offered his assistance. He took me up into his studio and showed me his most recent project – a painting of each of the four Manning Street houses. People who know me know that I LOVE the history of Flint architecture –specifically the older, historic homes. Any time I see a photo or painting of Flint History, I immediately snatch it up (ebay is a good source of this stuff – please don’t outbid me) Well the artist and I agreed on a price and I will soon be the owner of these four spectacular original paintings.
Amazing who you’ll meet and what you’ll find by knocking on a few doors.
This morning I was a guest at Antioch Baptist Church on Stewart Street. This is the church that is lead by Pastor Randolph, the head of the Concerned Pastors in Flint. I never knew church could be so much FUN! I say that with the utmost respect and admiration for the congregation.
The message I heard this morning from Pastor Randolph was incredibly powerful. I wish every youth in the city of Flint could have been there to hear him.
The Concerned Pastors and the local churches should be playing, and I believe they want to and will be playing a crucial role in the future of this city and school district.
Peace and please read the recent editorial by Kelly Flynn. (see the posting “Must Read” or go to the flintjournal.com.) She hit’s the nail on the head with this one.
Mike |
|
|
|
Sun Apr 15, 2007 7:58 pm |
|
|
CrossSchoolBoard
F L I N T O I D
|
Monday, April 16, 2007
Went to the Black Leaders Forum today at Bethlehem Church for lunch. I didn’t realize that the primary focus was going to be a School Board Candidate Question and Answer Forum, but I’m glad it was. Like I said before, I wish there were one of these open forums everyday from now until the election.
From my memory, here’s a list of the candidates that were present (forgive the misspellings)
1 year:
Jennifer Dillard
2 year
Herbert Cleaves
Donyelle Dorough
Michael Cross
Anne Metcalfe
4 year
Rev. Curtis Baker
Eryka Hunter
Erica Leverette
Stephanie Robb-Martin
Harold Woodson
Tracey Fountain
Moderator: Woodrow Stanley (I must say he did a good job of keeping the candidates focused on the questions, timely and on task)
For posterity sake, so that I can remember what I said, and so nobody can accuse me of speaking out of both sides of my mouth, here’s a list of the questions asked and my answers as I remember them.
Q: In a sentence or two, why do you want to serve on the board:
My Answer: “My passion is the education of our children because they are truly our future. My skill is organizational business management. So this is the perfect opportunity to mesh my passion and my skill. And I LOVE a challenge.”
Q: What word(s) best describe you and what you will bring to the board:
A: Leadership skills and intellect
Q: Would you support hiring the new superintendent from within the system or an external national search?
A: I think the FCS needs to have a reputation of hiring the best and the brightest and most qualified. With that being said, I do believe that the best person for the job right now is from within the district
Q: What leadership skills would you look for in a superintendent
A: The ability to promote inclusiveness of all the members of the community. Divisivness has been the status quo for the last 35 years on this city and it has gotten us absolutely nowhere.
Q: 85% of the students in the district are African American, but 70% of the teachers are white. Does this present a cultural divide?
A: There a good white teachers, there are good black teachers, there are bad white teachers there are bad black teachers……..we need to accept that premise……..with that being said, Yes, I am concerned that we don’t have more African American teachers and I would aggressively support a campaign to attract more African American teachers to the FCS. However, it’s not that easy……..it’s very hard to recruit African American teachers to Flint because this town doesn’t have much to offer young professionals. I would support creative ways to encourage young African American students to go into teaching (a grooming process). I believe it is Charlotte, North Carolina that has this type of program where they promote and encourage their own minority students to go into teaching and after graduation, give back to the community.
Q: Are you familiar with and do you support the reform plan?
A: I have reviewed the reform plan and there in my opinion there are pros and cons to it. I do agree with much of the reading assessment aspects of the program. I believe 70% of the academic aspect of the reform plan is positive, however, the implementation was horrific.
These are the questions I can remember. I’m sure I’ve missed one or more.
I had a campaign committe meeting tonight. Anybody hear what happened at the board meeting? Did they appoint a new Super?
Peace,
Mike
Last edited by CrossSchoolBoard on Wed Apr 18, 2007 11:38 am; edited 1 time in total |
|
|
|
Mon Apr 16, 2007 9:35 pm |
|
|
Biggie9
F L I N T O I D
|
Mike,
Well done.
Interesting question regarding the 85% black [do we know that for certain?] and 70% white teacher issue.
But.
What is the presumption behind the question?
A "cultural difference".........hmmm. What is that implying?
What "cultural differences" are so vast that as to make it impossible for one race to to communicate and inspire a person of another? Does that mean a black teacher cant effectively teach an hispanic, white, native american, oriental?
i would have rejected the questions premise. We aren't teaching culture..we are teaching reading, writing and arithmetic. Those don't change because of cultural differences.
techniques? maybe. word problems changed from Sarah and Ethan to Quintreece and Darnell...so? The number of apples they have is still devised by addition.
That's the fallacy the black race hustlers are trying to sell....because you ain't black you can't understand the black mindset. because you don't understand the black mindset, you can't possibly relate to them. because you can't relate, you can't possibly be an effective teacher.
to that I say BS.
show them one black kid with a good education, performing well, taught by a white teacher, sometime in their academic career and you've disproven this gross distortion and racist supposition.
They don't want to hear that though, because it undercuts their power and control. Keep the sellling we're different...you must look like me to teach me. What a bunch of tripe. Guess we'll have to segregate the kids into races, religions, genders, what else? sexual orientation? weight? vision ?
Cause that is where that line of thinking is headed if you accept it.
BS.
I understand your answer, given the nature of the circumstance it was presented in. Guess you are learning what you have to do to get elected Mr Cross. Good luck. |
_________________
Biggie |
|
|
Tue Apr 17, 2007 12:17 am |
|
|
terrybankert
F L I N T O I D
|
FYI
- - -
Flint ed board to name acting superintendent May 9
Posted by Melissa Burden April 17, 2007 00:10AM
http://blog.mlive.com/flintjournal/newsnow/2007/04/flint_ed_board_to_name_acting.htmlFlint ed board to name acting superintendent May 9
FLINT -- The Flint Board of Education plans to name an acting superintendent May 9 and is accepting applications for the post through April 26.
The board Monday approved a search process that will include interviews of candidates May 1-3.
Board President Stephanie Robb Martin said she has a list of about 17
potential candidates -- people who have expressed interest in the position
and people the community, board members, district staff and Superintendent
Walter Milton Jr. have
- - - end
Martin has a list?
TRB |
|
|
|
Tue Apr 17, 2007 5:34 am |
|
|
CrossSchoolBoard
F L I N T O I D
|
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
FINALLY! My signs are in!
Tomorrow will be spent canvassing the town putting up my yard signs.
A few businesses (everything from gas stations to restaurants to dentists) have agreed to allow me to put up my signs – this is especially appreciated because the first thing you think of as a business owner is “how is this going to hurt me.” So I appreciate the fact that they’re willing to support a political campaign.
If you happen to see one of my signs up on a business, show them your appreciation by stopping by and buying a coke, or a sandwich, or a tank of gas, or a pizza, or a root canal.  Seriously, tell them thanks for supporting a decent candidate (if that’s your opinion)
I’ll be attending tomorrow nights board meeting. I'll give a synopsis after the meeting.
Peace,
Mike |
|
|
|
Wed Apr 18, 2007 11:33 am |
|
|
CrossSchoolBoard
F L I N T O I D
|
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Board meeting lasted until 11:00 pm
The most interesting and enlightening portion were the pleas from the concerned parents, i.e. customers.
Central High School was described as a zoo by a very frustrated parent
The Parent group ACORN presented their findings in regards to surveys they did with parents and teachers in terms of supplies. >70% of surveyed parents felt that they had to spend too much on student supplies as a result of the district not providing enough supplies and >80% of teachers complained about having to spend too much on supplies out of their own pockets for student supplies. One reportedly spent over $2000 on supplies.
Another parent gave a less than stellar critique of the reform plan and its implementation.
I briefly spoke with the ACORN representative after the meeting and encouraged him to contact me as I would love the opportunity to learn more about the group and establish a connection with them. Surprisingly a majority of the current board members had never heard of the group. But it's these kinds of groups (concerned parents who want to be actively involved in the system) that need to be encouraged, fostered, nurtured, and utilized.
Somebody who was present the entire meeting as well, asked me after the meeting if I was "sure I wanted to do this"......I think the implication was that she thought the 4 hour meeting was so taxing and tense.
I realize its a thankless job.........and I realize the current board members have to sacrifice a lot of time and energy and tolerate many frustrations. Regardless of how good or bad they are at what they do - they should at least have our respect for serving.
But to answer the woman's question:
I can't flippin wait for this challenge! I wouldn't miss it for the world! Life ain't no fun when it's easy!
How'd Lakisha do?
Peace,
Mike
p.s. almost forgot. My fund-raiser is tomorrow night from 4pm to 7pm at Luigi's on Davison Rd...........Please do me a favor: if you show up - let me know you read these posts - it'll encourage me to keep doing them.
Last edited by CrossSchoolBoard on Wed Apr 18, 2007 11:28 pm; edited 1 time in total |
|
|
|
Wed Apr 18, 2007 11:01 pm |
|
|
Biggie9
F L I N T O I D
|
Nice report Mike.
It was either LaKisha tonight or Sanjaya....drum roll please...
Sanjaya goes HOME!
LaKisha stays around another week, hopefully with a type of music that suits her better. A Country Music star she ain't. |
_________________
Biggie |
|
|
Wed Apr 18, 2007 11:12 pm |
|
|
CrossSchoolBoard
F L I N T O I D
|
Thursday, April 18, 2007
Had my second fund raiser tonight. Once again a wonderful turn-out. I am reluctant to mention how successful these fundraisers are because I don't want to frustrate the other candidates who are having fundraisers...(campaign finance laws require that its all public information- as it should be). I continue to be amazed at the support I'm getting. $3000 at the Whitehorse, $2000 at Luigi's. If this sounds crazy to you, you're not alone. I never would have dreamed I'd raise this much funding from a couple of hours of listening to people and shaking hands.......but it's not as great as it sounds.........a single mailing to probable voters can cost over $1000 in postcards and stamps - and typically you want to do three or four mailings. Add in the cost of yard signs and etc. and the money is spent awfully fast. The truth is, I'll still end up putting much of my own money into this campaign. And this is just a school board election - imagine how much more a mayoral or governor's race would cost..............ridiculous!
Has anybody ever had better thin crust pizza then at Luigi's? That's some good stuff.
The best part about today.......I continue to receive calls from complete strangers willing to pledge their support. I also open my P.O. Box once weekly and every single time there has been at least one check from somebody I've never met, usually accompanied by a letter addressing their concerns. I can't tell you how encouraging that is.
Aggressive door to door knocking this weekend. This is turning out to be one of the best parts of the campaign for me. You never know who you're going to meet. Everybody's got a story and they're all interesting.
Peace,
Mike |
|
|
|
Fri Apr 20, 2007 12:01 am |
|
|
CrossSchoolBoard
F L I N T O I D
|
Sunday, April 22, 2007
_____________________________________________________________________
Spent most of Saturday and Sunday knocking door to door and handing out literature. Ran into a man who I had an interesting conversation with (I'll call him John)
John: “Are you sure you want to do this?” (run for school board)
Mike: “I’ve never been this sure about anything in my life. It’ll be a challenge but I live for a challenge.”
John: “Those are the exact same words I heard from ___ _____, when they ran. And they resigned before their term was up.”
Mike: “Well, I want you to remember this conversation and if I don’t make it the length of my term, I want you to remind me of this chat.”
The man was not being discouraging or sarcastic – he was simply matter-of-factly stating the facts……….which is: many people want to run for and sit on the board – but not everybody sticks it out.
It’s these types of conversations that make me more determined to sit on the board. I know it’s going to be challenging and require much patience and tenacity. It’s the kind of environment I thrive in.
____________________________________________________________________
Woke up Sunday morning, walked outside, picked up the newspaper and was pleasantly surprised to see that the Flint Journal gave their endorsements this early. I'm certainly appreciative of receiving their endorsement.
Here’s a good story:
Went for a drive early Sunday morning and realized that a lot of my yard signs had been taken. I immediately got frustrated and wondered if somebody had maliciously driven all over the city and snatched up all my signs. As I drove around town, I realized that the culprits only snagged a few signs (maybe 20). So I spent a decent part of Sunday afternoon replacing the missing signs.
Monday morning rolls around and a man shows up at my clinic and drops off all the stolen signs. It seems there is a prank that youngsters partake in – they call it “signing” : snagging a bunch of yard signs and putting them all in one victim’s yard (considering all the crazy things young people can get involved with now days…….I’m not going to complain about a little “signing”) How cool of this man to take the time to deliver the signs back to me. He never gave his name to my staff – but if for some reason he reads this – THANK YOU!
Peace
Mike
p.s.
School Board Candidate Forum
TONIGHT
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
6:30 - 9PM
Mott Community College- Regional Technology Center
1401 E. Court St. Flint, MI 48503
Cosponsored by:
Flint Area Public Affairs Debates:
Baker College, Flint Community Schools, Genesee Intermediate School
District, Kettering University, Michigan State University
Cooperative Extension, Mott Community College, The Flint Club,
University of Michigan- Flint.
&
The League of Women Voters of the Flint Area
The more the merrier.
Come learn about the candidates |
|
|
|
Mon Apr 23, 2007 8:34 pm |
|
|
CrossSchoolBoard
F L I N T O I D
|
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Tonight was the candidate forum put on by the League of Women Voters. I said in an earlier post that I love these opportunities to address a group of potential voters. I thought it went well, but that of course is my biased opinion.
There were some video cameras there recording the forum. Hopefully it will show up on Channel 17 cable access. If anybody knows info on this, please let me know so I can spread the word to those that couldn't make it.
I got a very good response from the audience members after the forum - which is appreciated. But my favorite comment was from a young lady....."you're very articulate, but how tough are you." (what a great question from her!)
I could only respond with a smile: "well I guess you'll have to wait and see."
I couldn't let her get away without having her define exactly what she means by "toughness." Her response was the "ability to hold people accountable when nobody else will speak up"...................ahh, now we're talkin! Well, then add "toughness" to my list of qualities as well.
Peace,
Mike
Last edited by CrossSchoolBoard on Wed Apr 25, 2007 6:12 am; edited 1 time in total |
|
|
|
Tue Apr 24, 2007 9:21 pm |
|
|
Biggie9
F L I N T O I D
|
of course Mike, you meant "toughness" in the latter paragraphs and not "tHoughness" [which I do not believe is really a word]
the spelling & grammar police [of which I am NOT one, engineers treat English as a second language] will forgive you because of the events of the evening. no doubt you are tired. |
_________________
Biggie |
|
|
Wed Apr 25, 2007 1:25 am |
|
|
|
Forum Rules:
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Register
Profile
FlintTalk.com Forum Index
> Political Talk
