Former Roseville Community Schools SOCIAL WORKER and City Council person was arrested for suspicion of drunk driving and leaving the scene
of an accident, according to
these articles dated Febuary 2, 2009. Kepler is now a
Macomb County Commissioner.
Between the DUI arrests of Kepler, and
Judge Catherine Steenland mugshot
I am actually ashamed to tell people I live in Roseville. After "taking responsibility" for the incident, Kepler sued
the state to get her license back. Update: November 2010, Irene Kepler was arrested a second time for suspected
drunk driving. She looks a bit worried in her
mugshot
It is my undersanding that some Roseville residents debate who takes the better mugshot,
Judge Catherine Steenland
or
Irene Kepler
Liar, Liar
One day I was called to substitute teach at Guest Community Center and the teacher left us a movie to watch.
The kids I was subbing for were probably 14-16 years old.
The name of the movie was "Liar Liar" with Jim Carey and I had never seen this movie. As we started watching
the movie I was a little shocked at the sexual content and I checked the CD box. The movie was
rated PG-13 so I sat back down and the class and I watched some more. A few minutes later in the film, Jim
Carey gets into an elevator with a woman with large breasts and a low-cut shirt. He starts leering at her, says he "wants to squeeze
them" then says, "mama" and starts making sucking sounds.
Well, I had seen enough and I was extremely uncomfortable watching this movie with young girls and boys of this
age and whom I had never had contact with before.
I got up and turned off the movie and put on the History Channel. I figured the
teacher that left the movie MUST have not known what was in this film. A couple of minutes later the teacher
in the classroom next door stuck their head in the door and said, "Why did you turn the movie off? My class
was watching it too."
They had been watching the same movie in their room next door. The movie was loaded in the VCR in the library
so any classroom in the building could watch. They turned the movie back on for their class.
When I started building this website I went and rented "Liar Liar" watched the movie, and made some notes. At one point in the
movie Jim Carey says to a man, "you stuffed her like a turkey, didn't you?" making reference to him having intercourse with a woman who was married to someone else.
At another point in the movie Jim Carey calls his ex-wife to lie to her and tells her he can't make it to their
son's birthday party because he is working late. The camera pulls back to show Carey in bed with his female
boss.
In another scene Jim Carey calls his boss a "dick head."
In another scene Care says, "you stuffed her
like a turkey" in reference to a man having sex with a woman who was married to someone else.
In another portion of the movie Jim Carey tells the judge that his female client, "has been ridden more than Seattle Slew"
in reference to her sleeping with a lot of different men. If I went to a Roseville City Council meeting and said those things during the
"hearing of the public" I would be thrown out. I think I might do that just to make a point.
I asked the Director of Guest Community Center's Alternative School Deborah Goethals if she thought that movie was a appropriate for school and she told me
that it was; they had shown the movie before and the kids liked it.
When you consider that our school officials think it is okay to show a movie like this in school, then you consider all of the money the City of Roseville wasted harrassing
Ed Stross
over the painting on the side of his building, it makes you wonder if anyone running our city has any common sense at all!
Laughing All The Way To The Bank
One day I was talking to a Roseville Schools custodian. We discussing the fact that Saint Clair Shores
Huron Valley and Westland schools were eliminating their union maintenance staff. They were getting rid of janitors, grounds
keepers and several other positions to save money. This work was being contracted out to local companies
who could do it cheaper.
The custodian just laughed and said, "That ain't gonna happen here, too many school board members have too many relatives that would lose their jobs!"
This custodian was right on the money. I went to a school board meeting and sat in the back and just listened one night.
I listened as Joe Steenland and Bob Eineichner both who have multiple relatives who are janitors in the district, ramble on
and on about how wonderful the janitors of Roseville schools are. Steenland and Eineicher and both mentioned how they
"weren't the smart kids in school" and the school custodians had been a big influence on them. They talked about how the Roseville custodians were a good influence on the kids
and should be eligible for awards from the students like the teachers are! I wish I had a movie camera because I don't think most people will believe that story.
I worked in the district for 3 solid years and I like the custodians too.
I was once a night janitor myself when I was in high school. However,
I really think Joe Steenland and Bob Eineichner are liars concerning the positive impact the custodians have
on the kids. In my time in the district, I saw very little interaction between janitors and students.
I also think Steenland and Eineichner are simply playing politics
and manipulating taxpayers and kids
to keep there relatives in jobs because they KNOW that
other districts like Saint Clair Shores, Birmingham, Southfield, Huron valley and Westland are eliminating these high paying union maintenance positions and
contracting out the work to private companies.
Please click here
to see a related article from the Michigan Education Report.
Also, click here
to see how the article goes on to say contracting out custodial work is up more than 26 percent and 90 percent of school districts are happy
with the results. The article is from the Michigan Education Report.
I certainly won't make any new janitor friends by pointing this out however; the writing is on the wall. As more
and more districts have to make cuts, that money must come from somewhere. I do not think that Roseville
taxpayers should be obligated to overpay for maintenance work done by the relatives of school board members at
the expense our our kids.
LaFeve A Liar?
June 2010,
C & G Newspaper
reported that Roseville Middle School was failing and the government was
threatening to close the school unless certain conditions were met.
Assistant Superintendent Mike LaFeve told the reporter that Roseville Middle School had basically
been given a raw deal, "no one told us" and Mr. LaFeve threw out some statistics that he figured no one in Roseville
would understand and claimed
Roseville Middle School made Adequate Yearly Progress for the past five years. Well, that is UNTRUE.
The Macomb Daily reported in 2007 that Roseville Middle School did NOT make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) and half (3 of 6)
failing schools in Macomb County just
happen to be in Roseville.
Click here
to see the article from the Macomb Daily.
Mike LaFeve must have forgotten that Roseville Middle did not make AYP, he forgot the Macomb Daily front page story
about it, and forgot that I
put the story on this website. He forgot? No, I think he lied and thought no one would notice. You can be your own
judge.
Grosse Pointe VS. Roseville
The April 19, 2007 Grosse Pointe News reported that the district custodians, janitors and engineers
would be allowed to keep their jobs.
The school board in Grosse Pointe reconsidered putting the work out to bid as Saint Clair Shores had done.
However, the maintenance workers' union had to take $400,000.00 in concessions to keep their jobs...for the
time being.
Clickhere
to see the article from the Grosse Pointe News.
Therefore, the taxpayers of Roseville where the average household income is about
$43,593.0 per year are paying MORE for school janitorial services than the taxpayers in Grosse Pointe where
the average household income
is about $104,314.
Grosse Pointe VS. Roseville, Part 2
When Roseville School Board member were looking for ways to "save taxpayers money" they decided to extend
their terms
in office from 4 to 6 years.
Click here
to see the spin in the paper. Joe Steenland brags they are doing it to save a few dollars which could be spent
on educating kids and teacher salaries.
If Joe Steenland laid off his and Bob Eineichner janitor relatives and hired a private local company to do the
janitorial work it would save
Roseville several million dollars.
The logic in the article being...less elections cost less money. The story in the newspaper indicated that
it was GOOD for taxpayers.
When the Grosse Pointe School Board was looking for ways to cut election costs they decided to more the
elections
from a separate spring election and roll it into the fall elections. The Grosse Pointe News reported that
the separate
spring school election cost taxpayers between $45,000 and $65,000 and this expense would be eliminated.
The article also
says that this would increase VOTER TURN-OUT.
Please
click here
to see the article in the Grosse Pointe News.
The City of Eastpointe also has school elections combined with the regular fall election.
I wonder why the Roseville School Board didn't
simply do what Grosse Pointe and Eastpointe did and combine the elections?
That would be a good question for
someone to ask our new City Clerk, Richard Steenland who just happens to be the son
School Board President Joe Steenland.
Which saves more money
Richard Steenland, fewer elections which limits voter choices? Or combining the elections which increases
voter turnout?
Nepotism in michigan schools
Typical Roseville School Board Election
State Senator, Mickey Switalski of Roseville wanted to combine the May School Board elections with the regular November elections. But the Roseville
School Board (Joe Steenland) won't let poor Mickey because the board members are afraid that if more than 10% of the voters turn out (as in a typical school board election) THEY might not get
elected for an 8th or 9th consecutive term and their son (who is a JANITOR in in Roseville schools) might lose his union job. That's politics in Roseville and it
stinks. The voters stink because they allow it. Don't get mad at me, I just call them like I see them. If you have another opinion, we would be glad to post it here.
Nepotism in michigan schools
Saint Clair Shores VS. Roseville
June 2005 Roseville Community Schools laid off its Director of Special Education, Dr. Dennis Frendo.
The school board and
John
Kwame Kment
also laid off about ten paraprofessionals (teaching assistants) in the district.
The reason given in that paper was a "budget crisis" in the district. Roseville schools did not
lay off any union janitors.
Saint Clair Shores did the OPPOSITE of Roseville. The school board and administrators in Saint Clair Shores got
rid of the union janitors and hired a private company to do the work for far less.
With the money they saved, Saint Clair Shores did not lay off any of the teaching staff or paraprofessionals. And, St Clair Shores
hired the former Roseville Director of Special Education, Dennis Frendo to come and work for them! It isn't any wonder that
the MEAP and ACT scores in Saint Clair Shores are higher than in Roseville. In Saint Clair Shores they put education first.
In Roseville, the school board and administrators put their kin folks first.
Caribbean Cruise
I was eating breakfast and reading the paper when I saw
this article
which says: Joe William Genest is getting married, will Honey moon in Caribbean, is from Roseville, works for Roseville Schools, and has
a mother named Theresa. The couple will reside in Harrison Township....not Roseville.
Turns out, Joe is the son of Roseville School Board
member Theresa Genest.
RCS had just laid of the Director of Special Education, Dr. Dennis Frendo and several paraprofessionals.
It appears the RCS board thinks the kids of
Roseville don't need
a Director of Special Education like Dr. Dennis Frendo or the paraprofessionals in the classroom helping kids.
But they do need an audio visual technician who just happens to be related to a board member.
The board laid off Dr. Frendo and the paraprofessional
support staff who worked directly with kids daily because of a "budget crisis" as mentioned in
this memo
from Becky Vasil. This is business as usual in Roseville Community Schools.
After you click on the memo, remember to click on it again to make it large enough to read.
You can do that to all the images on this site.
Birmingham VS. Roseville
Oakland County Eccentric newspaper writer Greg Kowalski reported on March 17, 2008 that Birmingham schools
were considering privatization of janitors and bus drivers to save money. Kowalski quoted district spokeswoman
Marcia Wilkinson as saying, "This is driven by the fact that we have to reduce $3.2 million in our budget
and keep the cuts as far from the classroom as possible." That quote stuck out in my mind since Roseville
Community Schools did the opposite. In 2005, Roseville made budget cuts and laid off the Director of
Special Education, Dennis Frendo and several paraprofessionals who worked directly with Roseville kids.
Conversely, NONE of the janitors (who just happened to be related to school board members) lost their jobs.
Update: Birmingham DID outsource the janitorial work and bus drivers.
http://www.mackinac.org/article.aspx?ID=9461
"Birmingham schools privatizes three main support services
BIRMINGHAM
As part of a plan to eliminate a projected deficit of $3.2 million for the next school year,
Birmingham Public Schools voted to contract out the district’s custodial and transportation services, according
to The Oakland Press. The move is expected to save the district $2.7 million.
In order to balance its books, the district explored cutting 26 full-time equivalent positions. With contracting,
however, the district will add 15 positions, according to the Birmingham-Bloomfield Eagle.
The district selected Durham School Services to provide transportation services and GCA Services Group to
provide custodial services, as reported in The Oakland Press. According to the Mackinac Center’s 2007 school
privatization survey, Birmingham is the first school district that has contracted with GCA.
The district already has experience in contracting out support services. Its food service is currently being
managed by Sodexho. If the contracts are signed, Birmingham will join just five other school districts in the
state that contract out for food, custodial and transportation services.
References:
"BPS to privatize school services to save nearly $3 million, Birmingham-Bloomfield Eagle, April 2, 2008
School support workers going private," The Oakland Press, April 3, "
So, Birmingham where the average household income is $86,800.00, pays less
for their janitors and bus drivers than Roseville residents where the average household income is about $43,593.
Birmingham saved $2.7 million. The 2.7 million would pay for about 50 new teachers for one year.
Roseville VS. Southfield
http://www.mackinac.org/article.aspx?ID=9461
"Southfield contracts out custodial and transportation services
SOUTHFIELD — Southfield schools decided to contract out its custodial and transportation services and rejected
last-minute concessions offered by its service unions, according to the Detroit Free Press. The move is expected
to save the district $21.5 million over three years.
A consultant hired by the district recommended Durham School Services to provide transportation and GCA Services
Group to provide custodial services, according to The Oakland Press.
For the 2006-2007 fiscal year, the district spent $14 million on operations and maintenance and $7 million on
transportation. It had a positive balance on its food service fund, according to its financial reports."
References:
"Southfield school board moves towards privatization," The Oakland Press, April 10, 2008
"Southfield schools to privatize bus, cafeteria services," Detroit Free Press, April 23, 2008
The 21 million dollars saved in Southfield could pay for about 420 new teachers for one year. Roseville will not contract out
the school janitorial services because too many people on the school board would have to lay-off relatives. Blood is thicker
than common sense in Roseville.
Roseville VS. Fraser
I saw
this ad
for a Roseville home for sale. Notice that one of the selling points of the home is the fact that it is NOT in the Roseville school district.
Same with this house
which is in the Fraser School District.
As well as
this one.
I dabble in real estate and see ads like this all the time.
Realtors know about the poor reputation of Roseville Community Schools and it shows up in their advertising. When you walk across the street from
the Fraser district to Roseville, the MEAP and ACT scores and property values drop across the board.
Six Failing Schools
The September 9, 2007 issue of the
Macomb Daily
reported that there are 6 failing schools in Macomb County. They were:
Clintondale Middle School in Clinton Township.
Oakwood Middle School in East Detroit Public Schools.
Richmond Middle School in Richmond.
The last 3 were Dort, Huron Park and Roseville Junior...All in Roseville. Half of the failing schools in the county
just happen to be in Roseville. I think the school boards policy of "blood is thicker than water" method of "management" seems to be having an impact. A few more years of padding the janitorial payroll with your relatives and ALL of
the failing schools will be in Roseville!
Texas Hold 'em
I was asked to substitute at the auto shop in Roseville High School. The teacher left some work for the students to do.
Several boys pulled they desks into
circle, I thought they were going to work together.
They pulled out a deck of cards and started dealing poker. I walked over and told them to stop. They looked at
me like I was nuts. They all said at the same time, "we do this every day!" I had been told by another teacher
I worked with at Guest Community Center
that auto shop allowed poker playing but was not sure if I should believe it or not. But now I had seen it with my own eyes.
I substitute taught for another teacher on a different day at Guest Community Center and nearly the identical thing happened.
The poker cards came out and the books remained closed. They said they always played cards. I was worn out from putting up with this kind
of thing and why fight the system and I let the kids play cards! Speaking out about such things in Roseville is a no-no and will get a beginning teacher
into trouble with the older,tenured more experienced teachers if they point out things that should be corrected. So, you learn to keep your mouth shut.
Did I mention that the 2006 Grosse Pointe math MEAP scores were more than double the scores in
Roseville?
After working in Guest Community Center for two years I came to some conclusions:
1. I would not let a doctor who graduated from an alternative medical school treat me.
2. I would not let an auto mechanic who graduated from an alternative automotive school work on my vehicle.
3. I would not let my child attend an alternative school like Guest Community Center. I thought is was more of a baby-sitting service
than a school and I know several other Guest employees that share that opinion.
If you lower the standards enough, anyone can get a diploma which renders it meaningless.
"Heavily Involved"
Roseville School Board member Bob Eineicher told the newspaper in
this article
that he was "heavily involved" in the vocational education programs in Roseville. I think the reporter must have misunderstood Bob because I worked in the Roseville
vocational programs for two years. I never saw Bob at our classroom, I never saw him at any of the staff meetings, I never received a call or memo from him, I never heard anyone mention his name. I didn't even know
Bob existed until I saw his name in the paper as a candidate for the school board! I think the only thing Bob Einicher is "heavily involved" in is...
keeping his sons in their union janitor jobs for Roseville Schools. I find it ironic and a little comical that Bob Einicher is on our school board
and two of his sons became janitors in a school district wher their father just happened to be on the school board. And when money gets tight,
this memo
indicates that Roseville Schools will cut educational resources and keep the union janitors with no concessions.
Metro Beach
I ran into a fellow who told me he works with Roseville Community Schools Superintendent, John Kment in maintenance at Metro
Beach. I thought he was mistaken, but I checked around and yes, our Superintendent,
John
Kwame
Kment, the poster child for Nepotism
everywhere,
has long maintained a part-time job at Metro Beach.
So let's review boys and girls,
1. Taxpayers pay Kment about $191,000 per year, which is 4.5 TIMES the $41,000 average HOUSEHOLD income in Roseville and less than
five percent of the people in America make $100,000 or more per year.
2. Roseville has half the
failing schools
from the Macomb Daily.
failing schools in the county.
3. Kids play poker in the classroom (I saw this myself).
4. The high school did not make AYP and has some of the worst ACT and MEAP scores in the county.
5. We have
not one
sex scandal,
not two
sex scandals,
but three
sex Scandals between teachers and students in the last few years. The Metro Times published
this article
about sexual abuse that went on in Roseville Schools for over 20 years.
Like me, are they also "bad" for speaking out?
6. Roseville taxpayers pay MORE for school janitors than Grosse Pointe, Birmingham, Saint Clair Shores, Westland, Huron Valley and Southfield
who all have higher household incomes.
7. In spite of the facts above, our School Board President, Joe Steenland lets our Superintendent, John Kment, work a second job at Metro Beach.
8. June 2010,
C & G Newspaper
reported that Roseville Middle School was failing and the government was
threatening to close the school unless certain conditions were met and Assistant Superintendent Mike LaFeve
has the nerve to claim he had no idea were considered to be in a sorry state. Maybe he needs to resign so
RCS can hire someone who has a clue about what is going on in their own school district.
9. And then....August 25 2010, the Macomb Daily, Detroit News and C & G newspapers all wrote
articles
on the 92 lowest achieving schools in Michigan.
Roseville Community Schools has the distinction of being the only suburban district with all (2) of their middle
schools
on
the list of failing schools. Superintendents, John Kment,
Mike LaFeve and Becky Vasil were not available for comment.
To add insult to injury, according to
this article
Roseville is going to name two schools after Steenland and Kment.
I think If John Kment were the head coach of the Detroit Lions and they had just one terrible season,
the fans would riot if they found out Kment was working a second job at Metro Beach. Several of the
male teachers in RCS refer to Kment's beach job as "bikini patrol" behind his back.
The parents of Roseville must not mind because they did not protest.
If it weren't so sad it would be comical. That is my opinion. What do you think?
Tell school officials what you think.
"To sin by silence when they should protest makes cowards of men." - Abe Lincoln
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." -Edmund Burke
Want to make a complaint? Here is the place to do it.
Michigan Department of Education
608 West Allegan Street
Lansing, MI 48915
(517) 373-3324