Take a chill pill Hannah, its been crazy for the past week there. 3 years being there same rules all three years than BAM new rules over night, it will take time to adjust. Good thing I graduate in January.

I dont understand why they need air for only 2 weeks out of the year. DO THEY HAVE windows that open?

union/nonunion- sorry EVERYBODY needs to eat!!

doesnt walmart EMPLOY LOCAL PEOPLE who need jobs?

we need ac for GOOD education? HUH?

oh no "RULES" we dont have those in everyday life it must just be a "school" thing!!

Sorry little girl there will always be rules , rules added, changed, and rules overruled. They do that cause sometimes some rules dont work and NEED to be changed!! GET USED TO IT it is life!!

if taxpayers spent BILLIONS or whatever on these schools it is a good thing teacher are looking out for the building . It needs to LAST with out little punks breaking it. YES THOSE TEACHERS DID PAY FOR IT THEMSELVES and your parents , and grandparents and a lot of people who dont even have kids or know who the heck you are. HAVE SOME RESPECT for other peoples things now and forever!!

Hah than the teacher is bsing about that part and I agree it should be cut back.

When I was at Parker, the passing time was 4 min and we didn't have time to talk. With at bigger building, I don't know how kids have time to loiter, but if they do, maybe the passing time should be cut back again. And since Dr Schroeder told the school board members about the parade in his address on Sunday, I don't think it's a secret.

Not my fault they fight. They should grow up and not resort to fighting, but passing time is the only time a lot of students are actually able to talk. I didn't mean to sound like a brat but everyday there's some kind of new rule. And now we're have a parade at school on Friday and one of my teachers said don't let the school board find out we can get in trouble, is that iffy?

simon -- I would contact the principal and the ESC.

Students were asked to keep moving today because there are groups of students who are in fights, sometimes several a day, and all they do is stand around blocking the halls until something happens and a fight ensues. Parents of Parker students should ask them about the numerous fights. My daugher said the one last Friday was just awful.

It's pretty silly that people think India has no air conditioning, and strange that people would think that their image of a third world country is what Janesville should aspire toward. Let me remind people that the United States is the richest nation in the world, indeed, in the history of the world. We have three times the GDP of Japan, and ten times the GDP of India, which has four times as many people as we do.
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Janesville may be facing a tough year or two here, but that's no reason to deny our students the best education we can afford. If anything, it guarantees a future for Janesville workers.
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These are fantastic new schools and Janesville should be proud. In the long run, they will definitely have been worth the investment. Don't shortchange students on something this important.

tiredofhearingit...That was the point I was trying to make with my original comment. So many people misinterpreted it.

swtlilone2 - Can you sit in the halls?

Man, can you believe those teacher's have the audacity to tell those kids what to do? The next thing you know they will be telling them to be quiet and pay attention when they are teaching!!! Who do they think they they are acting like they run the school. Everybody knows little Johnny and Susie are in charge, just ask their parents! I'm with you Swilltone2, you hang in their standing in the hall. We'll get those teachers in their place.

Oh, yeah, only the kids get to be cocky. I'm calling my school board right now to tell them to LET THOSE KIDS LOITER IN THE HALLS FOR GODS SAKE!!!!!

At Parker we are not allowed to stand in the halls anymore, if we do we are threatened a write up. I do not agree with a lot of the stuff that goes on there. With the new stuff there it's getting to the teachers heads. A lot more cocky than last year.

swtlilone2 - huh?

It's the teachers, how they think they paid for the school ALL of it. How they think they own it.

You need to be more specific about what exactly is driving you away from Parker; it cannot be the facility??!!

I go to Parker and I am VERY unhappy with the new "school". It's driving me away from it.

I agree with you on the US auto vs. foreign - although many will disagree. As far as the skilled trades - I also agree I was trying to play devils advocate & show the hypocrisy in this town. If you've read my other posts you will see what I mean - basically people like to thump their union chests when its them getting the money but when they spend their own money - its typically on Non Union labor - look at how many union home builders, plumbers, sheetmetal workers, painters, concrete finishers etc. etc. are in Jvl that do residential - zero, because they cant survive the market of hypocrisy in this town.

Actually many of the foriegn cars are built by the UAW. Have you ever worked on a foriegn car? They are not better quaility. Anyway I was talking about skilled trade unions aprentiship programs. Not the UAW.

So what do get by hiring a non union contractor....the same bill for less quality.
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Apparently GM didnt get this memo because last time I checked the foreign auto makers were kicking their UAW butts.

exfib...I never bashed any nonunion contractors in my prior comments. But since you decided to bring it up. Non union contractors charge about the same as a union contractor. other wise every union contractor would have been belly up by now. Non union employees do not get as much education as a union employee. So what do get by hiring a non union contractor....the same bill for less quality. As a tax payer I would rather get more bang for my buck...wouldnt you?

exFIB; You made my point - when its OUR money it should go to the lowest qualified bidder & give tax payers "the best bang for their buck"- but then don't hold us tax payers hostage with Union negotiations between the teachers, city workers etc.and try to drum up local support for teachers getting a raise in the name of Solidarity - thats just plain hypocrisy.

Check your local history. JEA members have supported GM during labor disputes. I was impressed with our "new" Parker. It should be celebrated, not met with sour-grapes. The staff I talked to said they have no problem filling up the new areas; halls are still plenty congested.

So let me get this straight, if you are non union your are not allowed to work? If that's the case I might as well get down to the unemployment office right now.

I'm sure that Cullen didn't give the job to the other contractor based on them not being union. They probably got it because they were faster/cheaper/better than your company.

I see you union guys all the time picketing some job that non-union guts are working at. If you have so much time and money to waste picketing then why don't you just lower your prices so you will get the job in the first place? Why should somebody pay top dollar for you to work 1 week a month and picket/whine the other 3?

It's your choice to be union, that's fine. But don't cry because other non-union people want to make a living and support their families too. If they are happy with their employment why should it bother you?

When it comes to MY tax dollars I want the best job done at the best price, not inflated so I can pay for somebodies inflated wage.

Sounds more like somebody is pissed they didn't get the job as is using this thread to further their agenda.

I just hope they have enough students to fill both high schools. With the way things are going in Janesville, we will soon only need one high school. And we will need to close some of the elementary schools. Sad but true!

dmfd24; I agree with you 100% - all the WalMart, big box store bashers here dont get it - they're HYPOCRITES! Its Solidarity for them when its them getting the money/benefits but "your on your own" when they are the one's paying.
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samueladams1775 --If the teachers union was not just out for themselves they would do like Madison - Solidarity my a**!!!!

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn...

I agree with janesvillegirl. Let's look forward and use these great schools as a selling point for Janesville.

The schools are amazing, thank you Janesville.
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As for the comparison to Mumbai...whatever. Other countries do things differently and that isn't always better. Most of our students have great work ethic and will become productive citizens.
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I am not sure where the gym teacher got 20% will use it since I believe 2 years of phy ed is required for graduation. That would tell me 100% would use it.
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Again, thank you to everyone who voted YES, it is a great inventstment in Janesville. Education is very hard work, there is no perfect answer. Some countries with better scores have a very different (less freedom for example) culture than we do. We also invest in an education for every child. That is a huge different from some of these "high scoring" countries.
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When I toured the schools the two thing I kept hearing was, the kids can't do math, but did you see the field house and weight room! The gym teacher went further and told us only 20% of the students will use them. NICE!! Money well spent.

I am happy about the schools, air conditioning and all. My son attends Craig and is enjoying the improvements. My happiness comes from the standpoint that money is being put into the future of the kids and the city. Should we ever get together and turn this town around our schools should be a great draw for families to come live here. No need to be upset over who built it, it is done, now lets work together as a city and turn this thing around, attract new business, new families and in exchange a new jobs and a new tax base to help pay for future needs.

Well my original point wasn't that Teachers have any pull over Cullen. But since somebody commented that they don't I though I would point out that there would have been something they could do. My original point was that teachers were picketing on there contract and asking for support from the community. But they were showing no support to any other union employees in the area. The other point I was trying to make is Shame on Cullen for bringing in out of town contractors in to work in our school district where we pay taxes. So that money doesn't even stay local. Not to mention Cullen is a union contractor they to should be standing up for there own.

Very ignorant, because teachers cannot strike by STATE LAW. If they did what you suggested they can be fired, fined and/or arrested. Just how would that benefit the students of Janesville?

dmfd24,
good idea. All the teachers should also leave because the administrators in the district aren't union either. If a hospital is having work done on it by a non union contractor do all the nurses get up and leave patients there to fend for themselves. If I was you I would drop this argument because it is ignorant.

Teachers are union employees...union employees are suppose to stand up for each other. If i'm on a job that non union contractors show up on I go home out of respect for the rest of my union brothers and sisters. When enough union brothers and sisters stand up for each other the job gets shut down is re staffed with a union contractor. So Sam Adams you ask how much control they have. How fast do you think Cullen would have a union contractor take the non union contractors place had the teachers got up and went home?

dmfd24--
Just what power over JP Cullen do you believe teachers have? That's like asking the waterboys for the Badgers to make the Packers defense tackle better.

Not sure if I would call it a "basic need".

If anyone is implying that I was putting teachers down on there ability to teach you should reread my comment. That had nothing to do with my comment. I also said nothing about teaching being hard or easy.

How is it that young people in India and China work so hard to get into the best schools and turn out so smart and industrious without air conditioning and all the other gimmicks we find so necessary here in our misguided attempts to lure kids to stay in school, study and learn?
HINT: They are hungry for a better life and realize that the likelihood of them becoming a sports hero, actor, or rapper is infinitesimally small -- almost as small as it is here in the US! And I bet they don't spend a lot of time recalling "a student passing out on a 90-degree day" in Mumbai. Here, however, it's all about comfort and entertainment, NOT motivation and work ethic. And don't even think of blaming the teachers for this -- they didn't create this culture (they're just stuck trying to deal with the progeny of it!).

Tolerance, people, tolerance.

oh, shutup! I am so sick of people slamming teachers! If it is so easy, why don't you do it?

20 million dollars to air condition both schools. That contract was awarded to a non union contractor out of Madison. Way to go JP Cullen and your phenomenal ability to keep the money local on these school referendums. What did the Teachers Union have to say about all that work going to a non union contractor...nothing they were to busy picketing on there own contract and complaining that this is a union town and we should support them. Well teachers where was your support when it came to union contractors in the school?

We got our money's worth! What I wouldn't give to go to school at Craig or Parker again. Did I just say that? :)