Board publicly reprimands Ketterhagen for his comments regarding teachers
By Jennifer Eisenbart
Staff writer
When Philip Ketterhagen was sworn in as one of two new Burlington Area School District School Board members in April, board President David Thompson gave him a bit of advice.
“Welcome to life in the fishbowl,” Thompson said at the time, cautioning both Ketterhagen and fellow newcomer Roger Koldeway to watch what they said in public. “Everything that you do now as a member of the board or as a private citizen will be subject to scrutiny.
“You are held to somewhat of a higher standard,” he added. “They will expect more of you.”
That much became evident Monday evening, as the board voted 5-1 to censure Ketterhagen for comments he made regarding teachers at the June 18 Curriculum Committee.
The lone vote against the censure came from Koldeway.
The June committee meeting was supposed to be – and mostly was – a presentation of the school improvement plans and how effective they had been throughout the 2011-12 school year.
However, at the end of the meeting, Ketterhagen voiced a clear opinion that the improvement plans were a failure, and that someone needed to get the attention of school district teachers because of a drop in Wisconsin Knowledge Concept Exam (WKCE) scores.
Firestorm erupts
While expressing that opinion, Ketterhagen also said that teachers should receive a zero percent increase in wages and be forced to pay a portion of their health insurance premiums as a way to get their attention.
Using what Ketterhagen has since referred to as an old farm metaphor, he added, “If you have a stubborn bull, you hit him over the head to get his attention. (Teachers) don’t believe we’re serious in improving these achievement scores.
“If you don’t change the culture, you’re not going to change the game.”
The response was an almost instantaneous outcry from the assembled school principals and other members of the School Board. The public nature of the meeting meant that most of Burlington knew what was going on within a few days.
While some defended Ketterhagen’s comments, others publically denounced them as an insult to a dedicated staff that had shown progress in many areas – just not necessarily in the WKCE scores, which are taking fading away as a measure of student progress.
With the subject gaining traction in the community, Thompson asked to have a discussion about Ketterhagen’s comments placed on the agenda for Monday’s meeting.
Board has its say
While a large crowd was at the meeting, only a few chose to speak up during the public commentary. Koldeway’s wife, Julie, said that there were many instances where those in attendance could take offense to what was said at the meetings, and didn’t.
Local conservative activist Jordan Debbink, meanwhile, took his time to say that he was excited about the zero percent tax levy increase, but reminded the board it had a responsibility to the taxpayers.
“You are here because we put you here,” Debbink said. “We are in control. You work for us.”
When the board finally reached the agenda item dealing with Ketterhagen’s Curriculum Committee comments, it was clear that what happened on June 18 had created not just public conversation, but divide within the board as well.
Thompson asked Ketterhagen if he would be willing to apologize. Ketterhagen declined, and handed out a copy of his blog post on the matter from June 21, where he apologized for using a metaphor that clearly had been misunderstood.
But after members of the School Board discussed the matter for a few minutes, the public wanted to get involved. Ketterhagen’s wife, Bonnie, said that public comments would be out of order, to which Thompson agreed.
Board members, however, had no such constraints. Bill Campbell said that, in his 27 years with the board, he had never heard “the kind of language and rhetoric that came out of that meeting.”
Scott Barrett, meanwhile, said Ketterhagen took the WKCE scores out of context and then went about imparting his message in a way that would undermine the mission of the School Board.
Koldeway referred back to comments made by Roseanne Hahn comparing the board to a family, and said that any family “has to adjust and understand each other.”
“It takes time,” he said.
Censure proposed
After the opinions were voiced, Thompson wanted to make a motion, and asked Vice President Campbell to take the chairman’s seat.
Thompson then brought forth the motion to censure Ketterhagen – a largely symbolic move that publicly reprimands Ketterhagen for his comments.
When asked for comments on the motion, the board nearly got into another disagreement. Campbell offered Koldeway a chance to speak first, and while the two talked over each other for a bit, Campbell finally told Koldeway in a terse voice, “Go ahead, make your speech.”
That drew some protest from the audience, but Koldeway went on to say that he didn’t feel a censure was appropriate in this case.
“This isn’t a precedent we want to set,” Koldeway explained. “We don’t censure people for having their opinions.”
However, for the rest of the board, the censure wasn’t so much about the opinions as the way Ketterhagen went about presenting them.
“I have to support the censure because (his comments) didn’t take the full situation into account,” said Larry Anderson. Hahn added, “I didn’t like the comments, and it isn’t just because I was a teacher.”
Before the vote was taken, though, Ketterhagen did ask for a secret ballot. Thompson said that it had to be a public roll call vote because of state statutes, which Ketterhagen disagreed with.
“If I find out otherwise, will I be considered belligerent?” Ketterhagen asked.
Thompson responded by saying he had consulted the board’s attorney, at which point Ketterhagen quipped, “then you have nothing to worry about.”
On Tuesday, Ketterhagen said that he had consulted with his own attorney, who had advised him to ask for a secret ballot.
The censure vote does not prevent Ketterhagen from acting in his elected capacity as a board member. It is simply a formal reprimand issued by his fellow board members.
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Maybe Ketterhagen should sit on a farm bureau board.. Sounds like he can relate better to bulls than humans.
Thank you to the school board for censuring him. Hopefully he’ll be gone soon.
The Board of Education sets policy to create a
nurturing environment for learning. The example
being set by this Board member is bad and I
would suggest if these inappropriate comments
occur in future the residents of BASD strongly
consider a recall election. I know, folks are tired
of recalls,but this rises to the level of employer
harassment when teachers are compared to cattle.
No-one should be censored,it was just a comparison,but this school board thinks that they are justified in silencing someone for their input.Its high time someone has the guts to say what they mean and mean what they say!!I say kudos t Mr.Ketterhagen
SS, get your facts straight. No one has been “censored”, the word is “censured”, which is a formal reprimand and that’s all, it doesn’t “silence” anyone. Mr. Ketterhagen’s comments were mean spirited and inappropriate, if you wanted a someone who what they say is mean and are mean when they say it, you’ve got your man
Shari—Using a metaphor is NOT saying what you mean and meaning what you say! Ketterhagen was not “silenced” by the Board.
Ketterhagen was voted in with a clear majority. Over time, the rest of the “Old Guard” will also be replaced. The taxpayers are sick of the School boards bureaucrats playing politics. We are all watching the school board now..
Mr. Ketterhagen is the one that brought politics to the board of education with his radical rightwing tea swilling ideology and his to willingness to display it through his derision of our teachers.
Wisconsin High School Rankings 10th Grade
WKCE Reading & WKCE Math for 2011-2012
Congratulations to Number 8 Homestead High in Mequon
Burlington fell from number 185 to 361 out of 460 schools
Results of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) involving a half-million students in 41 countries. Math and Science scores by grade 4, American students only score in the middle of 26 countries reported. By grade 8 they are in the bottom third, and at the finish line, where it really counts, we’re near dead last.
Wake up America
Mequon eh? I’d be willing to bet they have a teachers union there too, so you can’t blame the teachers there. Could it be that there is very little poverty and accompanying social ills in Mequon? Well duh!
We live in a culture here in America that glorifies ignorance. Just look at the tea party, an essential distillation of ignorance and ill will. So let’s not look at the culture or the parents or increasing level of poverty, let’s make scapegoats of the teachers for wanting to excersize their constitutional right of freedom of association. Besides, it’s perfect fit for the hidden agenda that is ever-present behind every policy the rightwing pushes and there is always a hidden agenda, always.
I think the board is so used to business-as-usual that Ketterhagen’s opposition is more painful than could have been foreseen. It’s good to see that since they’ve had so many years (27 I believe cambell said) of doing whatever they want. It’s about time someone speaks for Burlington, not the teachers union!
I thank Mr. Cambell for his service of 27 years. For many towns school board members get a compensation but not here. They give their time out of a sense of community. This city runs on a interconnecting groups of folks who donate their time to a variety of projects through service organizations and clubs. In these clubs there is no emphasis on politics; the emphasis is on the betterment of the entire community. The school board is another example of that. I don’t always agree with the school board but I truly feel that the greater majority of those who have served did so with the goal of providing the best education for the future citizens of our community while not allowing taxes to get out of hand. They worked with tax payers, parents and teachers without causing a negative and toxic atmosphere. They were right to guide the new member who stepped out of line.
I find it very ironic and a little moronic that MC thinks that people who have been elected and re-elected to the school board for years on end don’t speak for Burlington, unless of course by “Burlington” MC really means the extremist tea party faction of the citizenry.
Please don’t fret my friends. In only 9 short months we will be able to rid this board of both Mr. Barrett and Mr. Anderson. Brighter days are sure to follow.
Steve-
Its great to see that most people like yourself in this town are fair-weather activists now. Its great that people are paying attention for once but it wont lost. You like the rest will lose interest and again wont care about whats going on in the district probably a few months from now. People in this town lack the attention span to actually take a interest in government issues.
– Concerned Citizen
“people in this town lack the attention span to actually take an interest in government issues for prolonged periods of time”
– C.C.
Complacency is how all governments operate. They know that people will revolt,and soon thereafter they fall into a state of helplessness, despair and finally acceptance. Next spring, we will vote in 2 more we vote candidates and they will take over the board of education. Soon after the election we will lose most of our teachers and this town will turn into a skid row. Your property values will take a nose dive. If you support these 2 members, you will get what you deserve. our school system won’t be worth anything, and thats what these 2 individuals want.
Just curious why someone who has an interest in the community be it as just a resident or even a business owner would want the school system to fail. Just wondering the logic, I’m anticipating a far reaching off the wall response.
Because the rightwing agenda ultimately is to privatize the schools, turn our children into revenue streams for their profit centers, remove education from their tax bills and destroy teachers unions. You can get a glimps of this corporatist agenda here: http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/leaked-documents-detail-operation-angry-badger-u447pp9-139483133.html
That is why even though most of our public school students are doing just fine (except in areas of concentrated poverty), they constantly repeat the GOPropaganda bytes of “failing public schools” and “Bad teachers” to instill those notions in the minds of the public as being true, even though they are of course lies.
What are you talking about? I’m not following your train of thought.
John,
You’re presuming their interests extend beyond their own pocketbooks. There is no real concern for the community beyond how they can make money off of them. I believe it was stated in the community debate that a reason for running was losing customers.
The republican party is funded by the ultra rich. The rich want something in return. The koch brothers want to eliminate the US department of Education. They want to shut down the unions, which fund the democratic Party, and They want to privatize public education. They envision not making millions, but trillions of dollars running our nations schools. The alec organization and spin-off groups like we vote are getting their orders from individuals associated with the koch brothers. hen you hear republlican leaders talking about big government, they want to profit from it. Mr. ketterhagen and his sidekick preached the need for full transperency of the school board. It’s time for these 2 individuals to present their business model and their agenda and level with the community. They are the most secretive organization in burlington. Lets find out who is pushing their buttons.
Phil Kettewrhagen has shown that he is the absolute worse case scenario for a board member of a unit district school system. Ketterhagen hasn’t a clue as to how schools work, nor that standardized test scores vary with groups of children that are random in selection. The test scores aren’t reliable indicators anyway of what the children are really learning. The tests try to measure accmplishment, but only on pre determined criteria. The true measure of education is what students remember after everything else has been forgotten. How successful are the children later in life? What kind of citizens are they? Are they responsible members of the community? This is what is important! Phil Ketterhagen wants to cut the district to the bare bones and will search for any reason to do so, so that his taxes go down. He insults intelligent teachers, administrators, and fellow board members with his ill thought comments that show that he is no rocket scientist. Ketterhagen has a pre determined agenda to push his will upon a school system that is well run, accountable, and serves the students and the constituents very well. Ketterhagen needs to step back and LEARN, just as students do, before opening his poisonous mouth to spew forth venom that truly shows a lack of intellect! Ketterhagen was sensured for GOOD reason. Perhaps he will learn that he he has a chance to be proactive and help in making the school better, by being positive instead of being a reactionary, belligerent example of the far right wing of todays political spectrum. Burlington schools would be better off if Ketterhagen resigns. If this is not possible, Phil should shut up and learn how to be a responsible public servant!
Ken