Parents Uniting for Nelson

We've had a couple of lengthy threads about the situations at BHS here, here and all the way back to Di Yim's arrival here.  Now I have received a guest-authored piece from Glenn Mendelson who is quite well known around town as noted here.  I'll let Glenn speak for himself, although I did shorten it a bit!

I have lived in this community for over 55 years and worked here since 1977 with my family’s business, Lee Mendelson Film Productions.  Over the years, I have served this community as President of the Burlingame Homeowners’ Association, trustee for the Peninsula Health Care District and President of the Burlingame Lions Club.  I am a former Burlingame High School graduate (class of 1973).

Kevin Nelson, long time teacher at Burlingame High School, may be forced to leave because of conflicts with the administration, specifically with the new principal who has resigned. This is devastating for the students at Burlingame High. For 27 years, Mr. Nelson has been an excellent teacher, innovative administrator, and mentor to hundreds of past and present students. He has taught AP Economics, Government and History, built the Gate program, and inspired so many that it is outrageous to think that anyone would want to transfer him to another school or think that it’s in the best interest of BHS students. Transferring such a beloved and excellent teacher, mentor and student advocate is a tragic disservice to the BHS community and institution.

Mr. Nelson has been such an inspirational force that Uma Krishnan, last year’s valedictorian at BHS and current freshman at UC Berkeley, created an online petition to rally the community to appeal the transfer decision.  With almost 2,500 signatures of unwavering support for Mr. Nelson to remain at BHS, students, parents and alumni are asking themselves why Superintendent Skelly and the SMUHSD Board of Trustees remain silent about their decision to transfer him.  

Although 2,500 signatures should be enough to show how much he is appreciated, support for Mr. Nelson is far greater than the public realizes.  Many students, parents and even teachers have personally told me that they are afraid of retaliation if they speak for Mr. Nelson or against the school administration.

When I attended BHS from 1969-1973, the teachers were excellent.  However, when my children attended BHS several years ago, there were some teachers who shouldn’t have been teaching there at all.  The problem isn’t with Mr. Nelson.  We should be looking somewhere else.  Some students and parents are starting to speak up about those who really hurt the BHS environment and should go instead of Mr. Nelson.  It’s time to speak up and let yourselves be heard!

Glenn is rallying parents to add to the pressure of 2,379 petition signers that you can see here.  One of the ironies I see here is we often hear about teachers who cannot afford to live in Burlingame. Many believe that having teachers who live in town add a lot to the community by being seen at the grocery stores, athletic fields, parades, and other events, yet here we have one perhaps being told to leave the local school.  One can only hope common sense prevails. 

 

Comments

[Bruce Dickinson]

Joe, Joe, Joe, I gotta tell ya, some kids will never graduate the diaper stage and start wearing big boy pants. Censured and censored (yes those are two different words for the educationally challenged), yet AGAIN??? Seriously folks, Bruce Dickinson's 5 year old granddaughter gets in trouble less than some, or shall I say one poster on here. I failed to catch the latest and not-so-greatest transgression of the rules, as I and most others do what they normally do when they encounter a tantruming toddler: they ignore them!

Joe, you have been far too kind, so that now, the gadfly is taking advantage of "open mic" night and literally lashing out at the the very venue that is hosting open mic...talk about biting the hand that feeds you! Calling people fake, mistaking identities, posting people's phone numbers, grand conspiracy theories, wrong accusations, demonstrations of deep insecurities, wrong information about the community, being ungrateful in exercising the freedom of speech in this forum, and a lack of expertise in basically all aspects of of this website seem to define this individual. The only core competency of this gadfly is one thing: whining!

Apparently the "take a time out and go face the corner" tactic isn't working, which means it's time to deal with discipline the old fashioned way: give 'em a good ol' spanking!...Burlingame Voice style, baby!

[Basic values were not taught at home by parents...]

Oh yeah, police from multiple local forces confirm to me exactly what I'm referring to. Burlingame is rife with organized crime activities. And, the families that lead the crime and evil have been spotted hanging out with Joe Baylock. And they donated to Ann Keighran's last campaign and are considered her "good friends".

[Joe Soprano's Son]

I knew it Mr. Kent!!!! All this time my dad was spending behind the counter with the owner of the local italian sandwich shop wasn't a ploy to get more meat on his sub, it was a ploy to rob this fair city!!! You are the hero this city needs, not the one it deserves. Keep up the good work.

[BoardCandidate2017]

An Open Letter to the SMUHSD Board

How did you allow the collapse of Burlingame High School?

While the transfer is the decision of Kevin Skelly, the Board must accept responsibility for the collapse of Burlingame High School.

• Di Yim is a complete failure yet she is allowed to continue leading BHS. She will finish the year hiring new staff and planning a master schedule, items were she has already proven failure. You can only imagine what the net Chemistry teacher is going to look like.

• The SMUHSD Board allowed Superintendent Scott Lawrence to be a transient employee, collecting almost $300k per year without putting in any work in supervising the issues at BHS. If Lawrence fired Yim he would have to admit his failure in hiring her.

• The BHS Parents Group met with Mr. Lawrence multiple times to discuss their issue with Di Yim. Mr. Lawrence knew Ms. Yim was a failure, yet he granted her a contract extension and the Board approved it knowing that she was a failure. The problems at BHS could have been discovered and remedies during a new principal search, instead BHS was allowed to open with Yim at the helm, steering the school directly into disaster.

• Board President Marc Friedman not only met with BHS Parents, but encouraged them to come and air their complaints about Yim at a the Board meeting.

• Burlingame Parents have been complaining to Board members for years about the retaliation by BHS teachers to parents/students who complain.

• Freedom of Information documents moving among parents and There are more are being requested. These document describe highly questionable actions by teachers against students. It is assumed that the Administration and Board are aware of these activities.

• The Board needs to step up and take responsibility for its failure to act.

• The sad thing is that the Board is allowing Nelson to be the Fallguy for their failure to act. They know the truth but are allowing Skelly (who just got here and really knows nothing about the situation) to “cut the baby in half” as an effective solution to the problem.

• The Board was elected to act with ethical judgment to act in the interests of the student and parents of the community. Allowing an easy answer is not carrying out your duty. Its time to make a tough decision and do the right thing. Most of you know that getting rid of Nelson will not solve the problem… it will only remove the guy who has been showing you the problems at BHS for the past few years.

[BHSTruth]

I can’t sit by and watch this anymore. The trouble at BHS is centered on the bitching and complaining of a group of teachers who go after students.

Melissa Murphy is the center of the problem. This teacher is a threat to students and the health of BHS.

BHS parents… the administration is keeping Murphy at BHS while she is pushing out Nelson. Murphy is at the core of teachers who are lying to Skelly in an attempt to keep her actions from being disclosed.

The following was pulled from a public website and signed by Murphy.

WTF did she do that would cause great humiliation and embarrassment at school?

“If my identity in this legal action is revealed to the public and the memo in question is disclosed to the public, I will suffer great humiliation and embarrassment. Not only would release of the memo disclose private, embarrassing information about me, but I also am concerned that disclosure of memos of this nature will fuel gossip, be posted on social media, and lead to dissension among co-workers. I have young children of my own, and I do not want them to face embarrassment or questions about me I do not want my community to judge me negatively based on a single memo or deride me as a " trouble -maker" for bringing a lawsuit.”

Its time to find the truth before the truth finds you.

[Beenhereforever]

Seems to me that this ought to be made more public than just via the voice. Who does this Melissa Murphy thinks she is, and as a teacher, has she no ethics?
Also seems to me that the board members are not doing the job they were elected to do and that shouldn't come as a surprise, since two of them sat on the board in Burlingame and did nothing there as well.
I will say it a third time. This is a travesty.

[Glenn Mendelson]

You supporters of Mr. Nelson should post your comments on Uma Krisman's petition as it reaches 2400 people.

https://www.change.org/p/smuhsd-keep-mr-nelson-at-burlingame-high-school?recruiter=30261234

Best regards,
Glenn Mendelson

[Glenn Mendelson]

Glenn to All:

As much as I appreciate many of your comments about the situation with Mr. Nelson and BHS, I don't understand, if you feel as strongly as you do, why many of you won't use your real names. Is it because you have children still attending BHS and you are fearful of retaliation? If that's the case, I understand and hope that you will someday be able to reveal who you are. My children have already graduated from BHS so that is probably why I am not afraid to speak up. If there are some "bad" teachers and/or administrators at BHS that need to be exposed for the sake of our children, so be it. If it means taking the matter to the Civil Grand Jury, so be it. Please call me with your thoughts.

Glenn Mendelson
Citizens for Mr. Nelson and a better BHS!
Cell: 650-759-5802

[Glenn Mendelson]

RED ALERT! IT’S OFFICIAL!

Dear Citizens for Mr. Nelson and a better BHS!

Mr. Nelson’s transfer from BHS to Aragon is on the District Board’s agenda for approval next Thursday night, March 24th. The meeting starts promptly at 7pm if you want to come and voice your support for Mr. Nelson during “Public Comment” which is right at the beginning of the meeting.

We each have an opportunity for “public comment” and up to 3 minutes each to speak. If you are willing to speak, you need to fill out a small slip of paper, that they supply, giving your name, address and topic (ex. Please keep Mr. Nelson at Burlingame High School!). The slips are usually in a box on the front left side of the meeting room.

So please mark your calendars for Thursday night, March 24th at 7pm so that you can let your feelings be known. It may be our last chance to publically voice our support for Mr. Nelson in order to keep him at BHS. The District Board meeting is held in the Adult School, 789 E. Poplar Ave., San Mateo. Let’s fill the room as best we can so they know how much Mr. Nelson means to us.

I’m still hoping that Superintendent Skelly and the Board change their decision to transfer Mr. Nelson. The best suggestion that I have heard from the public is to let Mr. Nelson stay at BHS and give the newly hired principal the opportunity to work with him. Whatever happened between Principal Yim and Mr. Nelson shouldn’t be factored in to the equation.

Uma’s petition is now at 2,413!

https://www.change.org/p/smuhsd-keep-mr-nelson-at-burlingame-high-school?recruiter=473637766&utm_campaign=signature_receipt&utm_medium=email&utm_source=share_petition

I am almost done drafting a letter to the Civil Grand Jury, asking them to investigate the facts that led up to Superintendent Skelly’s decision to transfer Mr. Nelson as well as the District Board’s apparent decision not to intervene and reverse that decision. I’m waiting for just a few more pieces of information. Given that the District refuses to discuss the situation because “it involves a personnel matter”, I believe that going to the Civil Grand Jury may be our only way to determine how extensive the problems at BHS and the District really are. As of now, I plan to send it out after we see what happens at the District Board meeting on the 24th.

Please feel free to share your thoughts with our group or with me privately. You all have been great in helping with our cause!

United we stand!

Mr. Nelson and the BHS students are worth it!

Best,
Glenn Mendelson
BHS Class of ‘73
Cell: 650-759-5802

[Steve Kassel]

I spoke to several people about Melissa Murphy including students who had her as their teacher recently and heard only good things. I was told she is an excellent teacher and that the comments here are complete nonsense.

[BoardCandidate2017]

There is significant doubt that anyone has ever stated that Melissa Murphy is an excellent teacher.. except when Melissa Murphy made a comment on her own Rate My Teacher page to give herself an excellent rating.

Many of the facts about Melissa Murphy are in public documents and are being accessed by the investigating group of parents who are looking to discover what took place at BHS.. There are other teachers involved and their actions are also published in these documents.

Weaving a lie to cover up actions won't do any good... its all coming out right now.

How many people would sign a legal document that states,
" I will suffer great humiliation and embarrassment" if they had done nothing wrong.

The statement above is located on an SMUHSD sourced document. What did Murphy do that cause her to define her own actions as humiliation and embarrassment?

There is a second teacher who makes a similar confessions regarding their actions on the BHS site. This is not a single incident.

The legal document ends with the phrase, "Under penalty of perjury." So (if?) Murphy lied in a legal statement, then she is subject to a legal penalty.

A path of lies is hard to trace... you tend to forget where you put them all.

What did Murphy do at the school site to suffer this degree of humiliation and embarrassment?

Glenn Mendelson is correct about the group of teachers who are behind these incident and Mr. Mendelson will most likely get the information on them all.

[Steve Kassel]

It's a shame that people that don't have the courage of their own convictions post nonsense without having the balls to use their own name. And on top of that, the poster says that they will be a Board Candidate?? Please. Must be a Trumper.

[BoardCandidate2017]

Steve,

Read your other comments on the Voice. Someone used your name on a blog and you got fired. I guess you could understand how people would want to protect their identity but get the facts out in the open. The retaliation at BHS has been real, this thread would not exist if it were not. Local reporters and even the SM County Grand Jury read this site for information and not names. You made made a comment in defense of Murphy and that is fine... the documentation that is coming out will tell a different story and then she can explain herself to the community.

[hollyroller@hotwire.com]

It is unfortunate that Mr. Nelson may leave BHS.
However, the students at Aragon HS will benefit from his teaching.
The term:
"It is the Principle," and "Murphy's Law," has new meaning now too.

[BHSTruth]

Melissa Murphy spent over a year (or more) monitoring the online activities of selected students at BHS.

Most people would call this stalking.

What do you call it when an adult spends their time looking for information on teenage boys and girls?

Murphy spent her evenings going back to the pages of the same students over and over again as an intentional act.

In her own statement (public document) she refers to this guilty pleasure as a “Time Suck,” as she gets caught up monitoring the online lives of high school students.

Why?

What kind of psychotic individual does this to kids?

Murphy got caught in her guilty pleasure and instead of a reprimand the SMUHSD helped her cover up her activities so that BHS parents would not find out.

Would you want to know if a teacher was watching your child? Was Murphy looking at your student? Do you know?

The San Mateo County Counsel was brought to Burlingame High School to give a presentation on the liability of monitoring student’s online activity and mandated that ALL faculty and staff to stay off of student social media.

Melissa Murphy sees herself as a traffic cop, searching out students whom SHE deems to have run afoul of her rules. She doesn’t look for everyone… only the students she wants to get.

In her own words, Murphy states that when she collects the information on the students, she holds it refuses to release it to the Principal, Vice-Principal, or other members of the administration as she cannot trust these individuals. She then uses the information to shame students.

Murphy states that she must hide her identity from the BHS administration, as she is concerned that the parents of the students may be upset with her actions. (Really?)

What kind of a teacher engages in an activity where they have to hide their actions from the Administration?

If the SMUHSD Board knows about this why is she allowed to continue teaching?

The SMUHSD has not only allowed this “teacher” to be her own personal traffic cop and set the law by her standards but they have also cover up her actions.

Murphy was relieved of the burden of any legal responsibly of acting properly under the direction of BHS administrators because she does not trust them.

The SMUHSD is in possession of the documentation of these and other events surrounding Melissa Murphy, but has done nothing. She is allowed to continue teacher at BHS and continues in her activities towards students.

Students who were targets of these searches have been shamed, unjustly accused and penalized for actions in their personal lives. Others students have been significantly damaged through the emotional abuse inflicted by this “teacher.”

BHS Parents should be asking lots of questions as to why this woman is still employed at BHS.

[Laura]

I've been following this all since the beginning and as a BHS Alumni, it sickens me to read what has happened at BHS. What kind of a teacher stocks students for the sole purpose of using that information against students. What kind of teacher purposely tries to destroy a students future and what kind of school board, superintendent and principal helps to keep it covered up!! None that I would want around any child that I know!! I sure hope that when it comes time to vote this board out of office that the citizens rise up to do so. This type of behavior by the administrators needs to be stopped and stopped now. Those with information on this need to yell it from the rooftops so all can hear as destroying children's futures is unacceptable!

[Editor]

To avoid the long string of past comments you must scroll through to get to here, we have closed this thread and picked it up again with Part 2 found here:

http://www.burlingamevoice.com/2016/03/parents-uniting-for-nelson-part-2.html#comments

Please continue the conversation there. Thanks.