As a Klein ISD alumna... (Howe: high schools, club, train)

[JessicaSideways]

I have had an unique experience, having been at the poorer schools in Klein ISD (i.e. Eiland Elementary, Klein Intermediate) and the more well-to-do schools (i.e. Hildebrandt Intermediate, Klein Oak High School) and I have to make a few assertions here to help air some concerns. I know it's a couple months away from Festivus but here's my Airing of Grievances. ;-P

First of all, if you are in any part of the LGBT spectrum and you are unwilling to suppress it, you are sent to the special education courses. Because of this discrimination against me, I am having to take some fundamentals of Chemistry coursework at Metro here in Denver to make up for the Chemistry they never taught me in high school.

Secondly, when you are "written up" for any infraction, real or imaginary, you are sent to the office for a session of kangaroo court. If a teacher accuses you of something, .

Thirdly, a few of their teachers can't keep their bigotry in check. I remember a few but none as worse as my Business Computer Information Systems teacher, Ms. Grotkey (sp?) who had a penchant for calling me a "******" in class. And when I reported this to the administration, they did nothing about it. However, when she wrote me up for "being a c*ksucking m*f" (I kid you not, that's what it actually said on the slip), I still got ISS. Classy.

Fits in line with their history of homophobia: [url=http://www.religioustolerance.org/hom_psgr2.htm#klein]Gay-lesbian support groups in U.S. public high schools[/url]

I graduated in 2005 and since then, I've come out publicly as a TS woman, moved to Denver, transitioned, I have a fiance and I am working on becoming a doctor - although I'm going to have to take a few additional courses here at Metro to make up for the lack of instruction in high school.

The only thing I can really recommend for Klein ISD is for the district to take all of it's instructors and train them in the principles of Waldorf education. I have observed how Waldorf education works and honestly, I think when I adopt kids, I will put them in a Waldorf school. It would help the students so much if Klein ISD became a Waldorf school and perhaps it will help the district overcome it's tendency to lie and mistreat it's students.

[ftjoe12]

They teach you about commas and run-on sentences?

[GettaClue]

I'm so sorry that you had that experience! But I'm very glad that you're finding a sense of self in Denver and at Metro, which are both great places to be.

I agree with you that all public education could benefit from a healthy dose of Waldorf. The best chances for in-roads in that direction are probably charter schools. It's a beginning.

[crbcrbrgv]

GettaClue must think we are clueless.

[Supermac34]

I went through the Klein system and easily was accepted to UT and A&M. I really enjoyed my time in the Klein district and think its one of the best around.

I had several openly gay friends and I do not think anybody really cared at all.

I also think that if you were written up for what you claim you were written up for in this day and age, every news station in the area would have covered it.

I find your story a little strange and hard to believe having recently gone through the same system.

I also find it strange that you recently joined this forum, and over half your posts have been anti-Klein. Perhaps you did, in fact, have a bad experience, but the whole thing sounds a little fishy. I'll have to call up a couple of my old friends from Klein and see if they had the same problems, but I don't think they did.

[crone]

It probably had more to do with the school attended. Was it at the time the young woman tried to start a GLBT club at KHS? There was a very large contingent ,most of Champion Forest Baptists Church, who wanted to go to the Supreme Court and were willing to pay for the lawsuit. They also were willing to disband all after school organizations in Klein ISD in order to prevent a GLBT club. Sometimes, I think it was one on the main reason Dr. Surrate was run off. The Klein experience has a lot to do with the school one goes to.