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by Anura Guruge

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Related posts:
>> ACS Administration again drops ball
>> — May 23, 2014.

++++  Search on ‘ACS’ for many other related posts >>>>

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This pertains to last night’s
“ACS, BES and PHMS District Concert”
held at the Prospect Mountain Auditorium.

The concert, by definition, was great.

See earlier post about the ACS portion of the program.

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I don’t know the exact numbers and I can’t be bothered to look it up, but I assume that we must have at least 800 kids in Alton Central and Prospect Mountain High.

Given that we find it very sad (if not outright distressing) that we don’t have a single student or for that matter teacher PROFICIENT enough to accompany the Alton students during their choral performances.

Why does Alton have to import somebody from outside?

I actually know of one ACS 7th grader who is professional grade on the piano though his forte is his guitar. Why wasn’t he asked?

As with the Program we were NOT the only parents to comment on this.

It is incongruous and off putting. Though they may not realize it, this is an huge indictment on the Alton Music Program — across both schools.

When will the award-winning ACS IT Department will figure out how to insert accented characters into a Word document? It appears still way too complicated for their level of competence. Maybe next year.

Yes, Barnstead, in Greg Neveu, has a very gifted and inspiring music mentor — and we are, unashamed, fans of Greg (and Deanna follows his exploits on the Web and we try to attend his concerts). Then we have Paul Warnick in Gilford (our all time favorite), Robbie Burns in Wolfeboro and the immensely gifted Andy Campbell at Brewster & Clearlakes Chorale. I can’t see any of these musical directors going outside of the school to get piano players. I know that many kids at Alton take private piano lessons — if they are lucky with Siroun Braun. Yes, Teischan and Devanee both took piano lessons but they decided to give up.

I, for one, think it is wrong that we can’t find a single proficient piano player ‘in house’ so to speak.

And it also seems strange that the Barnstead Middle School Chorus has about 6 times more students than the ACS Chorus. I have to think the class sizes are similar. So why this huge discrepancy?

It can’t be just Greg alone. Plus talk about ambitious. Barnstead Middle tackled and did a very credible rendition of ‘Cantate Hodie‘. I think that classifies as exceeding expectations. Well done Barnstead.

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… .. ..... .

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.

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by Anura Guruge

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Related posts:
++++  Search on ‘ACS’ for many other related posts >>>>

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This pertains to last night’s
“ACS, BES and PHMS District Concert”
held at the Prospect Mountain Auditorium.

The concert, by definition, was great. The kids had a ball, the auditorium was packed and a good time was had by all. The kids, as ever, did a good job. I am proud of the kids. I have nothing but respect their commitment, talent, joie de vivre and in some cases individualism.

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There were two problems with this concert and they were BOTH to do with the ACS Administration.

My first gripe has to do with the ACS portion of the joint, printed and distributed Concert Program.

Deanna, this morning, scanned the relevant pages for me so that I could share them with YOU.

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Scanned Images Of the Concert Program.

Click to ENLARGE.

Alton Central Page 

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Barnstead Page 

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Do you notice anything beyond incongruous in the Alton section?

It wasn’t just us, all of those that were seated around us at the concert commented on it.

I can live with the underlines. If that made somebody happy and made them think that they were being way cool, so be it.

It is the inexcusably wrong use of commas that is a crime. The way the names are listed does not conform to any standard let alone make any sense.

It is downright stupid. At least have the decency to use semi-colons.

If a kid did this, I have absolutely NO PROBLEM. A ‘B+’ for effort. That is good. You have to start somewhere.

My gripe, as ever, is with the Administration.

Didn’t anybody check this before they printed 400 copies.

Where are the adults.

Where is the esteemed, highly-paid, larger-than-life Superintendent, B. Lander, Esq.?

This was a DOCUMENT that was being given out to the public.

It has to be incumbent on the Administration to check all such documents to make sure that they meet basic standards.

I know that ACS has policies regarding everything — other than probably stuff like this. NO, I don’t intend to go wading through all that mumbo jumbo to see what statutes they have violated. If they have policies about such stuff they were obviously violated and if they don’t have policies covering stuff like that — ‘shame on them’. As we saw earlier this year ACS apparently did not have any policies that covered ACS employees exposing their bums on YouTube!

To me this is just a repetition of when the ACS Administration published the 2013 – 2014 ACS Handbook — with this annotation on the cover: ‘Picture of Building’. Remember that? It is OK if you don’t. I preserved it for you … here.

Anyway I don’t want this in any way to detract from the fine performance by the kids. The kids, as ever, and the teachers, as ever, did FINE.

It is, as ever, the Administration that falls down on the job.

Another post re. concert shortly.

P.S., IF they were there, I did not see them. Did the Superintendent or the ACS Principal attend last night’s concert. They could have been there. I walked around. I didn’t see them. Given that they are both have significant presence it is usually hard to miss them.

P.P.S., It is 2014 and I have waited 7 years to see when the renowned, award-winning ACS IT Department will figure out how to insert accented characters into a Word document. It appears still way too complicated for their level of competence. Maybe next year. 

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