Burleson Star (Burleson, Tex.), Vol. 30, No. 39, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 23, 1995 Page: 1 of 18
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Thursday
February 23, 1995
18 Pages in Two Sections
plus inserts
Serving the
Burleson
area since
1963
50 Cents
advertisements
U.S. Postal Inspector
Linda A. Kerksey is warning
people not to be conned by
postal job scams that read
something like this:
'The U.S. Postal Service
is hiring for full time and part
time employment. Hourly
salaries start at $25 an hour.
For employment information,
call 800-555-5555."
Kirksey warns that if you
call the number for employ-
ment information, you could
get clipped. In most instances,
callers find out that you have
to pay about $30 to get infor-
mation of dubious value. The
person on the other end of the
line could lead a caller to think
that he/she is talking to some-
one from the U.S. Postal Serv-
ice but no postal jobs will be
offered.
Frequently, con artists
promoting the service offer to
provide callers with training
which is supposed to help in
See TRAINING, Page 10A
Toaster8 and
chainsaws recalled
due to potential
fire hazards
According to Burleson
Fire Marshal Stacy Singleton,
some Dualit Plus two and four
slice toasters and Stihl, Inc.,
chainsaws have been recalled
due to fire hazards.
The Dualit Plus toasters
are imported from England
by Waring Products. The two-
slice units have "CTS2E/DOM
and 11EA36" on the baseplate
on the bottom of the toaster.
The four-slice models have
"CTS4E/DOM and llEA36"on
the baseplate. Only toasters
with the letter "E" as the fifth
digit of the model number are
involved in the recall. Owners
of the recalled toasters should
immediately unplug the
kitchen appliance and call
Waring at (800) 831-3960.
Stihl, Inc., of Virginia
Beach, Va., is recalling ap-
proximately 50,000 Series
1127 chain saws because an
Please see FREE, Page 4A
^igJ^y^croier weatfier \Ciifbe
the norm for the next few days,
with the tem-
perature
to 70 by
day. Hied* to*
day will be
in the mid _
60s with a low in the morning
of 40. Westerly winds will turn
northerly today at 10-15 mph.
The forecast indicates a chance
of t’storms by Sunday.
Sunrise today: 7:03 a.m.; sun-
set this evening: 6:20 p.m..
Burleson Weather Chart
Day Low High Rain
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday 48
February rainfall: 0.26 inches
Year to date: 2.47 inches
ON THE INSIDE
Events calendar..........2A
Editorials...............3A
Obituaries..............4A
Lifestyles...............5A
Business.............6A-7A
Sports..................IB
Classifieds.........16B-18B
40
68
0.00
46
78
0.00
48
74
0.00
urleson Star
Burleson, Texas • For The Good Life
Lengthy meeting stirs controversy
Beware
postal
scam
■ Closed meeting
'normal* in certain
personnel situations;
communication mixup,
timing isn’t, however
By TERRY EVANS
Associate Editor
An element in a Burleson
school board meeting story was
in error due to a misunderstand-
ing, and has stirred up almost as
much controversy as the meet-
ing itself.
The Burleson Star reported
that a four-hour hearing, pre-
ceding the regular meeting Feb.
15, was closed at the request of
Taylor Elementary teacher Kay
Patton. Instead, the request to
close the hearing came from the
school’s principal, Dennis
Tatum.
Burleson ISD superinten-
dent Fred Rauschuber said that
any time there is a hearing of
this nature, it can be closed at
the request of the person on
whom it is called.
According to Rauschuber,
Patton asked for the hearing, so
whether it was open or closed
was Tatum’s call.
The hearing, and story, have
generated calls to Rauschuber’s
office as well.
"I got a couple of calls on this
from concerned parents,"
Rauschuber said. "They thought
we had a hearing on Kay’s teach-
ing abilities and future with the
school system. The hearing was
principal."
Tatum said requesting a
closed hearing is basically the
normal procedure because doing
so avoids people "leaving the
^What went on in this hearing is confidential,
and should not leave the meeting room.^
—Taylor Principal Dennis Tatum
not about her qualities as a
teacher, nor was it a termination
hearing, nor did it involve any-
thing about her contract. The
hearing was on a difference of
opinion between Kay and her
hearing with mixed-up informa-
tion, and reduces the chance of
slander."
The principal added that
closed hearings allow the people
working on the situation to deal
with the problem without con-
cern that misleading informa-
tion and rumors will leave the
room.
"All the hearings I’ve known
of have been closed," Tatum said.
"I’ve been in the district 21 years.
What went on in this hearing is
confidential, and should not leave
the meeting room."
Rauschuber agreed that clos-
ing a hearing of this nature is
normal, but not common.
"Normal? Yes," Rauschuber
said. "Do we do it all the time?
No.
"The exceptions are when the
board is hearing from no wit-
See SUPERINTENDENT, Page 4B
Photo« by DARLENE MOORE
THEY LEARNED TO BE CRAFTY: BISD elementary
students learned how to be crafty at Super Saturday
festivities Feb. 18 at Taylor Elementary. (Far left) Katy
Pogue and Kate Hunt listened before decorating Ding
Dongs in cake decorating class; (middle) Justin Thom-
son concentrated as he hammered nails while making a
string art project; and (above) Tara Artimier decided to
wear one of her creations (a basket) as she waited
patiently to make another piece of art in origami (paper
folding) class. The event was sponsored by the Burleson
Association for the Talented and Gifted. The classes
were taught by BISD teachers, volunteer parents, and
students.
Jeanie Gilbert's philosophy of teaching
Students must have 'real
life' skills at graduation
"My philosophy of teachingis quite simple. I facilitate learn-
ing; I do not teach.
"I am a firm believer that when a student graduates from
high school, he should not only possess mastery of the curricu-
lum that had been set before him but he should also possess other
attributes valuable for success in life. One of the most important
'real life* skills students need is self-discipline. Self-discipline is
not only useful in college (getting to class on time; skipping the
frat party to study), but will be used in every facet of his life (Til
lose my job if I'm late again;' 'I'd love the sports car, but it is not
in my budget.').
"My role in helping the student develop self-discipline is to
provide him with options. I often allow students to set their own
deadlines for major projects. In the same respect, they must
develop their own consequences and sign a contract stating they
will abide by their policies. I also give them assignments in
which they must prioritize their responsibilities. They begin
with something as basic as an assignment sheet and develop
their own planning and organizational strategies.
"Organization is another proficiency I believe crucial to
students. Organizational qualities are developed in early child-
hood (putting away toys), fostered in elementary school (devel-
oping a system by which homework actually makes it home), and
extended in junior high and high school where students must
learn to budget time for homework, projects, and extra curricu-
lar activities. Upon graduation, these same students must bal-
ance checkbooks, plan household budgets, prepare tax returns,
and pay bills on time. By making my class structured, I give my
students opportunities to explore different techniques for as-
signment accountability. If organizational skills are not ex-
pected, I feel we are allowing a great disservice to our students.
"In addition to good discipline and organizational practices,
I believe our students should leave high school with excellent
verbal and written competencies. The students need the means
by which to express their opinions in a manner that will be
conducive to themselves and their cause. They deserve to be
Please see STUDENTS, Page 8A
Born to teach—
Award finalist was always teacher
Video network would
link school districts
By DAUN EIERDAM
Burleson Star Staff Writer
The Burlesmon ISD and
eight other school districts hope
to benefit from an innovative pro-
gram that would link their cam-
puses in a video network.
Called the Distance Learn-
ing Network, the program would
allow students in the various dis-
tricts to share teachers through
a video link-up. Because the same
communications linee also would
carry audio and data signals, stu-
dents sitting in front of monitors
in one district could interact with
an instructor teaching a class in
another district.
The network also would
benefit districts in other ways.
Several districts could pool re-
sources to hire staff development
speakers, who would address
teachers in distant sites simulta-
neously. In a similar vein,
parenting classes across districts
could share speakers. Commu-
nity education classes and night
classes for high school students
also might beneift.
Districts which would be in-
volved in the network include
Burleson, Joshua, Keene, Gran-
Plsase see NETWORK, Page 4A
By SALLY ELLERTSON
Burleson Star Managing Editor
A Burleson High School
teacher vying for a state educa-
tor award said she never "be-
came a teacher; I have always
been one."
Jeanie Gilbert, German and
English teacher, is an "Educa-
tor of the Year” finalist in the
secondary teacher category of
the Association ofTexas Profes-
sional Educators (ATPE)
awards. Dietra Tutle, a kinder-
garten teacher at Mound Ele-
mentary, is a finalist in the ele-
mentary category (see Page 1
story in Feb. 20 Burleson Star).
The awards will be presented
during the 15th annual ATPE
convention March 23-25 in Aus-
tin.
The state finalist has been
at Burleson High School since
1984. She teaches German and
English and juggles being a
coach’s wife (Keith Gilbert, Bur-
leson High School varsity foot-
ball and girls track) and the mo-
ther of three—Chase, 11; Courte,
5; and Braeden, 18 months. A
fourth Gilbert is due on Saint
Patrick's Day.
Gilbert (then Medina) had
stuffed animals as her first
"students."
"As qf&rly as I can remem-
ber, I was sitting in my room
giving lessons to Raggedy Ann,
Pooh Bear, Schlummerle, and
Susserchen. Before I could read,
I would show them the pictures
of a story book as I pretended to
read,” Gilbert said. "I soon traded
in my dolls for the 18 month old
down the street. Using the dial
from a broken television set, I
taught Jon-Jon to count to 13."
A ninth grade English
teacher sparked the state final-
ist's love for literature and lan-
gu age. As a junior, Gilbert was a
teaching assistant and as a
senior she taught German at
the junior high as part of a pilot
peer teaching program. At BHS,
she has gone from 15 German
students 11 years ago to six
German classes in 1995. In
addition, in her fourth year at
BHS, she was the sole tutor for
students who failed the TEAMS
test.
"On Tuesdays and Thurs-
days, students came on their own
volition and.worked to improve
what is expected of them by the
end of their first day at school. I
have school policies and class-
room policies posted in my class-
room. Also posted are the conse-
quences should the student
'life is not easy. To live is to learn. To learn
is to err. To err is to grow. If a child is pampered
throughout his school years, what kind of adult
will be produced? If he fails as an adult, the
price he pays for his weakness will be a painful
(and probably public) one." _
their deficiencies, be they gram-
mar skills, reading skills, or my
Laotian student who needed to
overcome his language barrier.
They all passed," Gilbert said.
"They brought their needs and I
brought my time, my compas-
sion, my patience, and my gram-
mer book."
She believes that students
need responsibility to succeed in
life.
"My students are aware of
choose not to meet the required
expectations,” Gilbert said. "I
often have my students write a
contract challenging them to
raise their six weeks averages,
reduce their late work, and raise
their test scores. At the end of
the six week period, we compare
our contracts with iny grade
book."
That doesn't mean she
doesn't have fun in her classes.
See GILBERT, Page 8A
JEANIE GILBERT: Educator of the Year finalist
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Ellertson, Sally. Burleson Star (Burleson, Tex.), Vol. 30, No. 39, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 23, 1995, newspaper, February 23, 1995; Burleson, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth762905/m1/1/?q=Lamar+University: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Burleson Public Library.