I am a Richmond County middle school teacher. I would love to honestly tell you how I feel about Dr. Larke's job performance, but I'm afraid of what the RCBOE might do to retaliate against those of us who speak up.

Let's just say that teacher morale is extremely low, and many are trying to leave the system for neighboring counties.

I believe that his position should be termed just like any government position, after 4 years he should have to run for this seat again and that would give other people the opportunity to run against him, and after 8 consecutive years he should not be aloud to run again.

If Dr Larke and other board members were doing their jobs as they should than they would not hire people that do not need to work around children When they do these checks they need go go back from day one.

I think the county should take and put a statue of Dr. Larke next to James Brown then when the 20 or so visitors come to the great waste of money golf thing downtown so they can see how great Augusta has become. The fine leadership it has and how Augusta honors their great drug abusing, wife beating, educated dummies. Don't worry about doing backgrounds checks -- let Mr. Cheeks bring in one of his friends.... He will watch em'......

he's got to go !!!!!!!!!!!

I believe that Charles Larke has put in his time, let's give someone else a chance. It's time for the whole of Richmond County to change, schools and the county commission. If things do not change then Richmond County will lose all of the helpful parents who really care and the people who could make this community great to Columbia County. If he has a bad evaluation that should be the clue! He has got to go!!!

I find it hard to believe that Dr. Larke is just now receiving a bad rating on his annual evaluation. The ratings have probably been low for a long time, but with the old system he had the opportunity to change the results before they were published.

I am very thankful that AK Hasan has given the board the backbone to stand up to the tyrany that has controled RCBoE for far too long. The winds of change are blowing....

Where are we holding the celebration party at when he gets the "boot in the rear"? Yahoo!!!!!

I am a teacher in Richmond County. If you took a poll of most of the teachers in this county, you would be hard-pressed to find anyone who would give Dr. Larke a positive evaluation. We have low morale because 1) we don't have the materials that we need to properly teach; 2) many of our schools (even the ones that have been renovated) have severe problems in plumbing, pests, hvac, and structural stability; 3) we have administrators that emulate Dr. Larke, in that their main concern is keeping their butts out of the line of fire; 4) unsafe working conditions (i.e., violent students); and little appreciation for the excellent work that many of us produce in our classrooms, in spite of the obstacles.

I spent 12 years as a student in the Richmond County school system over 20 years ago and when I returned as a teacher I was appalled at the conditions with which I was faced. I remember strong administrators who were not only concerned about the students and their well-being, but also listened to parents and backed their teachers. I remember teachers who actually KNEW their subject area thoroughly and knew how to encourage one to learn. Though there were problems in other areas, I did not see the type of student and employee malaise that is evident now.

I agree that Richmond County schools have big problems. When any organization has major challenges, the catalyst for change comes from the leadership. If the leadership does not see that there is a problem, then subordinates are fighting windmills if they try to effect change.

Here is what I would do to help Richmond County:
1) Hire administrators who have a vision for excellence in education, are strong disciplinarians, concerned about parents, students, and teachers, who are the best qualified and not friends of the superintendent or board members;

2)Hire teachers who are the best qualified in their fields, not just the ones who "know someone" on the inside;

3)Do a better job at overseeing the construction process on schools so that shoddy workmanship is curtailed;

4)Treat all schools like magnet schools in that every school has the supplies that are needed in the classroom;

5)Eliminate 25% of the positions at the board offices (why do we need 3 personnel heads?);

6)Fumigate every school so that we can eliminate the pest problems (mice, roaches, snakes, etc.);

7)Support PTA meetings at the schools to encourage parental involvement in the schools;

8)Eliminate the media liaison position;

9)Return to the neighborhood school concept instead of busing students to opposite sides of town;

10)Eliminate the middle school concept because it doesn't work. K-5; 6th grade academy; 7-9 jr. high; and 10-12 high school.

These are some ideas that could work and make our schools a better place to work and learn.

Congradulations Kurtz88 at least you are not afraid to speak out as to what you think. But how many more teachers would like to speak out but are afraid of their jobs and just how loyal supporters does Dr Larke really have at this point both teachers administrators or even board members. At least he had to loyal board members suppose that will not go against him and that is Marion Barnes and Louise Curtis and Jimmy Atkins had not lived up to his compain promise to make Dr Larde accounable for his actions. It took the back bone of AK Hasan to go up against him. Even Barbara Pulliman and Joe Scott joined Mr Hasan. None of the rest of the board members even Jimmy Atkins has any back bone to stand up against Dr Larke. Well Mr Atkins it will not be as easy to get voted in the second time as it was the first time.

I have a child enrolled in Richmond County Schools and am surprised to hear all of the fuss about Dr. Larke. If he is indeed the root of all RCBOE problems, he should go. I have not lived in the area long enough to chime in on the anti-Larke campaign. I will submit this, though: if you are not doing all you can as a parent to ensure your child gets a quality education (more than just attending school), it does not matter who is the superintendent. Fix what you can fix first, then search out additional areas to improve. It is very easy to scapegoat others and blame them for failures we have a role in ourselves. Reading many of the postings from teachers on this forum, problems such as discipline and preparedness to learn each day are taught and remedied at home, not school. If your child is out of control, fix it. If your child is not performing up to his/her potential, fix it. If your child is not attending school, fix it. Much like voting, if you are not doing your part, you should not complain.

Thankfully Jeff Padgett was removed by the voters because of his I know it all mentality. Larke has the same mentality. Larke knows it all too. Just ask him. He knows all the troubles that plague our schools because he has fostered an environment that caters to ineffectual leadership. Larke couldnt lead if he were in a truck with a placard that said FOLLOW ME. A true leader knows when he has lost the respect and confidence of his followers and will step down. Larke is no leader and therefore has no clue that he should step down. When I attended public school here in Richmond County 25 years ago I was taught by TEACHERS. Now my child is alledgedly being taught by Lexus driving EDUCATORS that use terminology such as, flow for floor, dow for door, feets instead feet or foots for feet, akst instead of asked, churin, not children. I had the unrewarding opportunity to listen to an EDUCATOR read a paragraph from a book recently. I couldn't tell where the sentence's ended because it was read to all present as though it were a 4 year old that had no clue for punctuation, diction or expression. I realized rather quickly this is the reason my spouse and I work so hard with our children(churin)because they aren't blessed with TEACHERS as we were years ago. They are untouchable uneducated EDUCATORS of the Larke administration. I would much rather have my children taught by a TEACHER than one of Larkes EDUCATORS. Get rid of Larke and his EDUCATORS and replace them with people that are actually qualified to fill the positions.

Georgia is ranked 50th out of 50 states for education. Richmond County is rated towards the bottom in the state of Georgia. If we wait long enough, perhaps Dr. Larke can place us at the bottom. It is clear to me that he does not deserve his position or his exorbitant salary any longer. When I moved here a few years ago, a counselor at one of the public schools in Richmond County suggested that I should place my children in a private school if I could afford it. That is a sad state of affairs. This county practices unsafe policy on the school buses, the children are out of control, are not being properly educated (or educated at all in some cases), and the most important agenda on Dr. Larke's list is enforcing school dress policy. He has worn out his welcome and if parents are even remotely as concerned about the state of education under his tenure, then we need to band together and drive him out!!!

Charles Larke is the face of education for Richmond County and it is pretty obvious that we need a facelift!

I'd be glad to interview candidates for the job if the county can't afford to pay anyone...maybe we can do the interviews at the commission retreat or in Hawaii????

Maybe it's long overdue for the concerned citizens of this county to band together and make a difference. My personal email is oogie6649@excite.com. I look forward to hearing from people that are ready to make a change to our educational system and bring respect and quality back to our county.

Chuck

I am the parent of a one year old who has yet to be exposed to the likes of Mr. Larke's leadership. I pray that by the time he is old enough to attend school, Larke's regime will have ended and a more competent superintendent will have been found who can undo the damage that has been done. Our schools are out of control and Larke is asleep at the wheel.

In a normal job, an unsatisfactory review and/or numerous complaints from customers would lead to disciplinary action and possibly even termination, but for Larke, it means 2 more years of high pay for no results. How is it that for all of these years he has done a "satisfactory" job when parents have been complaining about him the whole time? Is there not a way to go back and look at the results of the board's comments for past reviews?

My comment to the board is:
Please, for the sake of our children, correct this problem now, before too many young minds and lives are damaged by Larke's ineptitude.

Come on teachers administrators mechanics classified employees speak out obout the situtation on Dr Larke You do not have to put your correct name here. He couldnt have that many loyal supporters left except may be a few that will bow down to him. There is a teacher at Warren Road that thinks highly of Dr Larke because her husband is a friend of Dr Larke So you see that he still has a few teachers that stand behind him and that thing that he is God

I'm not sure what you mean by attacking my use of my first name, bigmouth30906. The way I was raised is that you give people your name if you expect them to talk to you. I'm not sure where you are from or how you were raised, but it's called courtesy where I'm from. I placed my email address in my comment and I would like people to know my name if they decide to email. Your attack is unwarranted and would be better served aimed at the problem, Dr. Larke, not at another who shares your opinion.

I personally feel as Dr.Larke is the right person for that job.from
my stand point ,he stands his grounds on(NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND)some may not like his method of rules ,he just enforce them set by Ga law
Not one person can say Dr.Larke has broken any laws ,policy or rules.Know if the (RCBOE)let him go, its not easy hiring a good leader.Some parents may complain about the salary Dr.larke rightfuly earn.lets just remember he isn't the only person makiing them deicion .Even I
don't agree with the deicion they decided,beside he is incharge
until futher notice .know the name calling is not necesary it don't help at all. Some of you are just a leader as he is

I have to say, it really doesn't surprise me that Larke received an unsatisfactory review. After all, I honestly believe that if it were not for the 3 new board members, which one of them I helped to vote in, and took pleasure in voting Jeff Padgett out, this would not have taken place. Dear Jeff, I asked you during many phone conversations with you, at your home, to listen and help us parents, you didn't so you were put out. Like we said then, listen to us now, believe us later. Well guess what, later is now here.

Let's discuss what Larke has and hasn't done. I remember recently on a television news interview that he commented on how "A.K. Hasan was unethical and unprofessional", boy talk about the pot calling the kettle black, who would need a lightening rod while standing next to Larke, NO ONE. If I remember correctly Larke was a "teacher" for RCBOE, whoopty doo.

What he has and hasn't done:

1. Went back in history and gave his son perfect attendance award from K - 12.......talk about honesty, ethics and morals, guess a little white lie never hurt anyone
2. BAILED his son out of trouble/jail for stealing, CDs of all things. With a father making $177K ($177 thousand, rounded, a year. K = thousand)one would think he could afford a $13.86 CD from Wal-Mart (Wally World)Not just once, but several times if I am not mistaking
3. Not to mention that in one Richmond County School students are currently using books that are Copywrighted 1981 and 1984, which are books that us as parents with elementary and middle school students used when we were in school. No flipping wonder their education is suffering. They can't even get up to date books to teach your children. Parents, get your children's books and check the copywright dates. Ideally, text books should be no more than 10 years old, this is actually too old. The SS (Social Studies) books should not be no more than 3 years old, in order for them to keep up with and learn about current events.
4. There is a "Code of Ethics" which includes the "rule" that if a teacher is caught having an affair they are terminated. HMMMMM....that rule must not apply to Larke, I am now wondering if he is related to Bill Clinton, "it wasn't sex, it wasn't sex."
5. I remember one comment posted on this message board that they have been waiting for the last 4 years for a return call from Larke. I think I have you beat, unfortunately, I have been waiting since 1999, when they first implemented the "uniform policy", 7 years later and I am still waiting.
6. Let's all think about the "uniform policy", that was implemented in 1999, it was stated "it would help control children, reduce violence in schools, and create better test scores with a better learning enviroment.
- The children who are now in 9th Grade were in 2nd grade when this was implemented. Meaning those who are in 10th, 11th and 12th grade were in the 3rd, 4th and 5th grade when first created and were "forced" to wear such so called uniforms. Let's see if this worked and has been effective as they, Larke and School Board Members, to include Jeff Padgett. HMMMMMMMMMM....bomb threats in High Schools, more so now than ever. Guns in school, more now than ever, fights on buses, in schools to include stabbings. HMMMMMMM....where is the reduction and positive outcome of these uniforms. Where is miraculous reduction in all of the above with this uniform policy?????? This was not supposed to still be a problem for High Schools, especially 7 years later. Yes we all know it takes time, but how much time is needed before you concede to failure????
7. Last I checked Richmond County was ranked 64th in the state Georgia, and Columbia County was ranked 4th. Think RCBOE could learn from CCBOE???????

I recently moved from Richmond County to get my children out of this school system. I enjoyed living in Richmond County, I was born and raised in Richmond County and attended schools there myself. However, they were nothing like they are now, Dr. Strelec would not have put up with it. When we moved from RC to CC
(Columbia County) my daughter had a difficult time keeping up in CC School System, to where in Richmond County School system she was in the advanced classes and A Honor Roll. CC School system she was struggling to make a B, she had dropped to a couple of B's and the first time ever C's and a D. Talk about the heart break she had and dissappointment, when it was no fault of her own. However, I am proud to say, she has now improved and been placed in the advanced classes in CC, which is better and more advanced than RC advanced classes. I am exremely blessed and thankful to be one of the fortunate people who had the means to get out of RC and move to CC, a better community, school system, etc. I know that people are tired of hearing about RC and CC being compared to one another, McDuffie County Schools are also ranked much much higher than RC Schools.

CC does not have the uniform policy, and yet still made better grades than RC, not near the violence RC does, and please do not mistake that for me saying they don't have it, they just do not have near the severity, nor the amount.

I have heard Larke speak, as some of you know, it is a scary sight, sound and even thought. I have to ask, did he teach himself? His grammar is something I would not want my children learning, so how can you expect him to set standards or uphold standards when he can't even speak of them properly. I know for a fact that there are many teachers who would love to speak their minds, but can't because yes.......they would be FIRED on the spot.

I have to say, that out of everything I stated above, it being facts and the honest truth, that I could not think of one thing Larke has done that was positive or good, but then again, I take that back, he has been able to stand the heat, however, the fuel has now been added and I don't think he will be able to stand the fuel being added and the heat it is starting to put out.

Sorry but Doctor is not he, for if he had that level, he would know right from wrong and taken ethics classes.

Makes you wonder, are Larke, Marion Williams and Charles Walker related????

Thank God for Choices and Opportunities!!!!!

I wish all you renecks the best luck. Take you and your dum kids and move to columbia county,the next super...can stop the dumb teachers from teaching your dumb kids anything,i say Dr.Larke is a keeper,he didnt do it,the teachers and parents did it.And another thing,did you same idiots vote for bush,i bet 9 out of 10 said yes,dum as rednecks,hows your trailer standing up?

AL, I'm not sure your message was conveyed very clearly. Let me give you a little help.

You said:

I wish all you renecks the best luck. Take you and your dum kids and move to columbia county,the next super...can stop the dumb teachers from teaching your dumb kids anything,i say Dr.Larke is a keeper,he didnt do it,the teachers and parents did it.And another thing,did you same idiots vote for bush,i bet 9 out of 10 said yes,dum as rednecks,hows your trailer standing up?

Reworded with a proper education:

I wish all Richmond County Caucasians the best of luck. If you are unhappy with the educational system in Richmond County, move your kids to Columbia County. With the decrease in student enrollment our next superintendent will be able to focus on correcting the problems within our school system. Personally, I do not believe Dr. Larke is the root of the problems within the Richmond County School system. He is only one man and cannot be held accountable for the ineptness of teachers and parents. Furthermore, I attribute 100% of the blame to George W. Bush. He is the President of the United States of America and is responsible for the education of each and every student in America. Lastly, as a concerned citizen, I am very concerned how the Southern Caucasians modular domiciles are fairing.

Signed

alstone88
Proud graduate of the Richmond County School system

It would appear that a number of good citizens are of the opinion that Dr. Larke has risen to (perhaps beyond) the level of his own incompetence.

Simply put, Larke needs to go. And, he needs to take Mechelle Jordan with him!

It is apparent from reading and, in some cases, attempting to interpret the grammatically incorrect writings here that there is no doubt that intelligent people have decided Dr. Larke must leave while uneducated and bigoted people seem to support him. I wonder which side the voters of Richmond County are on? I hope the voters of this county feel strongly enough to put pressure on the elected members of the Board of Education to make a change before our own children sound and behave like some of Dr. Larke's supporters here.

HI,IAM WRITING THIS LETTER SO YOU CAN BETTER UNDERSTAND OUR SITUATION IN RICHMOND COUNTY. THE PRINCIPAL AT TUBMAN MIDDLE IS AGAINST THE PARENTS. MR LUMPKIN DONT WANT PARENTS ON THE PTA BOARD AT THE SCHOOL,ONLY TEACHERS. WHEN THE PARENTS WERE TRYING TO GET INVOLED WITH THE PTA,HE DISBAND IT. NOW,I KNOW SOME OF YOU READERS FIND THIS HARD TO BELEIVE,BUT ITS THE TRUTH. EVERY TUESDAY AND THURDAYS HE HAS COURT ON THE SCECOND FLOOR FOR DRESS CODE VIOLATIONS,AFTER THE THIRD ONE YOU ARE SUSPENDED FOR UP TO THREE DAYS. THE PARENTS OF THESE KIDS ARE NOT NOTIFIED UNTIL THE KID TELL THEM THEY HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED. NOW,MIND YOU THESE KIDS ARE GETTING READY FOR CRCT TESTING AND EVERY LITTLE BIT OF KNOWLEDGE THAT THEY GET NOW WILL SURLY HELP WITH THE TESTING. WE HAVE COMPLAIN TO DR.LARKE AND NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE. I PERSONALLY TALK TO A LITTLE WHITE GIRL AND A LITTLE BLACK GIRL,AND THEY BOTH TOLD ME THE TEACHER MADE THEM UNZIP THERE COATS,OR JACKETS SO SHE COULD SEE WHAT THEY WERE WEARING. I TALKED TO OTHER KIDS AND WAS TOLD ,IF THEY GET IN TROUBLE FROM TALKING,THE FIRST THING THEY DO IS CHECK WHAT THEY HAVE ON. I KNOW THE GUY IS NOT PREJUDICE BECAUSE HE SUSPEND WHITE KIDS AND BLACK KIDS ALIKE,BUT IAM WONDERING IS HE CONTRIBITING TO THE DROPOUT RATE IN THIS CITY,COUNTY,STATE AND NATION. YOU SEE,IF MY SON CAN WEAR WHAT HE WEARS TO CHURCH,BUT CANT WEAR IT TO SCHOOL,IS THAT MY FAULT. IF HE PRAYS BEFORE HE EATS LUNCH,IS THAT MY FAULT TOO. WE NEED SOME HELP AT TUBMAN MIDDLE SCHOOL IN A HURRY,OR THE DROP OUT RATE WILL GET WORSER BEFORE IT GETS BETTER. WE HAVE TRIED AND TREID TO GET LARKE DOWN HERE FOR HELP AND WE NEED SOME RESULTS NOW.WE ARE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR OUR KIDS ACTIONS,WHO HOLDS THE PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABLE,IF ITS DR LARKE,WE ARE STILL WAITING.