You're busted, Timmy

Just when you think Timmy comes up with an original thought on his Twitter feed, it's not.

Timmy got it here. 

Timmy, did you forget about a former school board president plagiarizing? Where is President Posti's integrity? 

You just got a goddam increase tonight of 5.5%! You make a whopping $205,492 this year and will get a SIX PERCENT increase next year! Where is your integrity, Timmy?

This has to be the funniest thing I read today

After everything I have written about Josephine Posti and citing her sources, a.k.a. plagiarizing, and the discussion about intellectual property, school district copyrights, and their terms of use on this blog, I came across this article in today's Trib.

According to surveys of students and faculty by Rutgers Business School in Newark, N.J., about 33 to 40 percent of high-school and college students admit to having done some kind of cut-and-paste plagiarism.
Academic integrity is important, as is respecting people's intellectual property, says Brentzel-Martina, who teaches her students to value their own ideas and work and to give credit to other people's.

Read more: Internet creates a rise in cut-and-paste plagiarism

Can't Let It Go

The person who first noticed Josephine Posti's knack for creative writing, has sent me this link.

 

http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/politico-reporter-dismissed-for-plagiarism_b53286

 

If only...

We caught it here, but our system is broken

A former assistant professor from Pitt's School of Nursing was caught plagiarizing and has been sanctioned.

Although the article cleared the peer review process, the editor decided to run the article through the Cross Check database, a compendium of previously published research. When the check verified her suspicions, the editors checked Weber's other articles.

"The machine caught it. The system worked," Spilka said.

Ultimately, the publisher issued retraction notices on seven articles that ran in the three magazines and halted publication of several other articles.

We caught it here in Mt. Lebanon, but our system is broken. 

Read more: Ex-Pitt professor given sanctions for plagiarism

Digital Citizenship

The following letter to the school board was sent on Friday evening by a Mt. Lebanon resident and taxpayer.  Fellow blog authors at Blog-Lebo and lebodesign and I were CC'd this article sent to the board. His point was there might not be a need for a forum on disagreement in the community if truth, facts and honest interaction was the rule.

It is being reprinted here with permission.

Subject: Check out Harvard Education Letter

To all:

On the subject of plagiarism and regarding the upcoming Community Relation's Board Forum "Can We Disagree Without Being Disagreeable" I offer the following link: Harvard Education Letter

I found it to be extremely timely in that it relates to the plagiarism issue, the Community Forum and Policy Committee topics.

While we are educating our children to live and work in the 21st century, shouldn't we also lead them on a path towards being "Good" 'Digital Citizens'? We as adults should "teach our children well" as Crosby, Stills, Nash wrote in one of their songs.

I still find it unfortunate that Mrs. Posti chose to defend her "wittingly or unwittingly" plagiarism. But, to move forward let’s learn from the issue and educate our kids in practicing "safe, legal and ethical use of digital information and tools." Let them know there are standards they should aspire too. We'll be creating better citizens and a better community!

As to the forum, I believe that YES -- "we can disagree without being disagreeable", if and only if the adversaries first agree on what it is they are being disagreeable about! See Mr. Rothschild's response to Mr. Reese that appears on Mrs. Gillen's blog. Playing loose and free with claims, facts and responsibility I believe is what creates the animosity in the community!

I quote the start of the Harvard article here:

"Volume 27, Number 5 September/October 2011

Turning Digital Natives into Digital Citizens By DAVE SALTMAN
Today’s K–12 students are commonly called “digital natives” because they have grown up with digital technology. But natives can run wild, using the Internet to (wittingly or unwittingly) plagiarize others’ work or bully peers using social media.

Now, educators are teaching digital natives how to become good digital citizens. As defined by federal officials in the recently released National Education Technology Plan and by educators in the National Educational Technology Standards for Students (NETS), model digital citizens “practice safe, legal, and ethical use of digital information and tools.” While cyberbullying remains a concern, teachers are helping students investigate the weighty issue of intellectual property rights in order to keep them within legal and ethical bounds. Using websites as well as their own tools, they are helping students understand important concepts such as fair use and copyright, and are also helping them see the relevance in these topics by learning how to protect their own digital work."

And below this from the "National Education Technology Standards for Students (NETS)" should be adopted by our policy committee for... students, teachers, administrators and board members! I love A!

5. Digital Citizenship

Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology and practice legal and ethical behavior. Students:

1. Advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology.
2. Exhibit a positive attitude toward using technology that supports collaboration, learning, and productivity.
3. Demonstrate personal responsibility for lifelong learning.
4. Exhibit leadership for digital citizenship.

 

 

Will we see this in Posti's report tonight?

Last night, I received an email from Josephine Posti. Here is my response, which includes her original email. Again, I become the issue. Before you ask, the joke was about teaching math through history that is going around globally. Mary Birks' reaction is for a future post.

Josephine Posti,

If you listen to the five minute podcast on my blog, I never once accused you of plagiarism.  I was very careful to say that you had not cited your sources. I purposely avoided that word when I mentioned that Tom Moertel came up with 11 examples where you did not quote your sources.  It was Policy Chair Lebowitz who said that I "was making allegations of Mrs. Posti allegedly committing plagiarism." (3:54 on the recording)

https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B9r_1biKte_bZmQzYTFhMWUtNjY4Ny00ZmQwLTk1OTEtYjI4ZWI4ZTVhMDIy&sort=name&layout=list&num=50

I guess I can make the same statement. The accusations you've made about me are serious, potentially defamatory and incorrect. 

Elaine Gillen

-----Original Message-----
From: Josephine C. Posti <JPosti@mtlsd.net>
To: egillen476 <egillen476@aol.com>; commission <commission@mtlebanon.org>; School Board Email list <SchoolBoardEmaillist@mtlsd.net>
Sent: Sun, Sep 11, 2011 7:23 pm
Subject: RE: What is Mt. Lebanon turning into?

Mrs. Gillen,

The accusations you've made about me are serious, potentially defamatory and incorrect.  I've spoken to three attorneys, including our solicitor, an English professor, my management team and a number of Board members and District staff and none of them identify my inadvertent lack of citation as plagiarism.  Plagiarism involves taking credit for someone else's work, doing it without their permission and receiving a grade or compensation in return.  I didn't do that.  I've apologized for my lack of citation and corrected the error.

This email seems to be your defensive response to the reaction you got from one of my fellow Board members on Friday when you sent us an extremely offensive joke that is derogatory toward children with special needs, English learners and education in general.  Her reaction is shared by each Board member I've spoken to; we each found it to be distasteful.  If you're not getting the reaction you anticipated, perhaps the message is being distorted and a cup of coffee might help clarify your intent.  I sincerely would welcome the opportunity to meet with you to gain a better understanding of your concerns.  My experience has been that conversations are much more effective in helping someone understand your point of view rather than name-calling and leaking documents and emails and that we are at our best when we seek common ground.  Consider it.  We both may learn something.

Best regards,

Josephine Posti
President
Mt. Lebanon School Board
412.667.1479

http://jposti.blogspot.com/

Mission: To provide the best education possible for each and every student

---

From: egillen476@aol.com [egillen476@aol.com]
Sent: Saturday, September 10, 2011 12:08 AM
To: commission@mtlebanon.org; School Board Email list
Subject: What is Mt. Lebanon turning into?

Dear Commissioners and School Board Directors,

I have emailed you at various times about situations that were embarrassing moments for the community.  We have a commissioner that lied about paying his taxes and yet voted on issues that affected all of us. We have a school board president who apologizes for not citing all her sources and the school board does nothing about it, yet all vote on policies that affect our students.  We have a candidate for Ward 1 who thinks nothing of running for commissioner and has a criminal record.  And now we have a swimming coach who is charged with leaving his five and seven year old children alone in a car.  Yet, when I bring up these situations, I become the issue.  Why is that? 

Must you create new policies or update our comprehensive plan for our leaders, or at some point, should our leaders take responsibility for their actions?

Elaine Gillen

Update 9:25 a.m. Bill Matthews submitted an excellent letter to the boys over on Blog-Lebo. School Board should learn from mistakes, reflect upon role Here is the link to Policy GBEE, which is up for discussion at tonight's meeting. Policy GBEE Student Communications Now, the School Board wants the teachers to do as they say, not as they do.

Can your kid get away with this?

I went to the Policy Committee meeting today at 4:30.  It was nice to see Dr. Steinhauer recording the meeting which will be shared on the District website tomorrow.

I uploaded the entire podcast on the Lebocitizens website.  The meeting lasted about an hour.  I was the only resident again.  Matt Santoni, from the Trib, was also in attendance.

For the citizens comments and questions portion of the meeting - the last five minutes of the meeting, one of the things I brought up was the Posti/ plagiarism issue. I mentioned page 13 of the 2011-2012 Student & Parent Handbook which is supposed to be used as a current reference to the many school district policies, procedures, guidelines, rules and services that apply to the high school, according to Mr. Brian McFeeley, Principal.  Please listen to the last five minutes of the meeting, which I have provided here. My comments about Posti. Our kids are required to demonstrate academic integrity and are expected to refrain from academic dishonesty. They are to report any knowledge of such acts of others. So when I reported Posti's actions, I was wrong for doing it and was criticized by Posti. Larry Lebowitz considered them as allegations using his lawyer voice. The policy committee would not respond since it was not on the agenda and Mrs. Posti wasn't there to defend herself. I pointed out that none of the school board members reported this behavior and yet, they expect students to report this. Again, do as I say, not as I do.  I guess I am supposed to go to a school board meeting and bring it up there.  Then Posti can publicly humiliate me again. Then each Board member will say something like how disrespectful I am, or some such thing. Unfortunately, I work on Monday nights now, so I will not be able to give them the satisfaction of doing that.  We don't stand a chance, Folks.  I feel really sorry for the kids.

Policy meeting agenda with no mention of Posti

On Tuesday, the Policy Committee will be meeting at the usual time, 4:30 pm. The agenda has been posted on the District website, and reprinted here:

Agenda 
  (Subject to Change)

September 6, 20111.  Policies - Sixth Review
      a.  GBEE, Social Networking

2.  Policies - First Review
      a.  Revisions to ECF, Energy Management Conservation
      b.  Revisions to JKF, Non-School Related Drug and Alcohol Violations

3.  Questions and Comments from Residents

They did promise to record the meeting and post it on the District website. No mention of plagiarism or bullying policies on the agenda. I guess that is where Item 3 comes in, but if no one can attend, that sure makes it difficult.  Too bad there is no teleconferencing for residents. "Operators are standing by.  Call now."

Update September 5, 2011 10:11 PM According to page 13 of the 2011-2012 Student & Parent Handbook,

Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 10th Edition, defines plagiarize as “to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own: use (another's production) without crediting the source.” Examples of plagiarism include copying passages or visual downloads from the Internet or other texts; not documenting written or oral sources such as teachers, other students, critics; fabricating or manipulating a quotation or source and using free or purchased papers from the Internet or other sources. Students receive instruction about plagiarism in English and other classes and are responsible to discuss their questions and uncertainties with their teachers.

If anyone is going to the Policy meeting tomorrow, you might want to mention this.

Steal This Report

In Steal this report: college plagiarism up,

You may know of it among your college friends, or if you're a parent, among your kids' friends: plagiarism is becoming as common as Wi-Fi connections at coffee shops.

The Pew Research Center, in conjunction with the Chronicle of Higher Education, recently surveyed 1,055 college presidents from two- to four-year schools, private and public. More than half of those top officials said they've seen an increase in plagiarism in the past 10 years. Nearly all of them say computers and the Internet have played a major role in the rise in stealing others work and claiming it as their own.

We could have our School Board President go on a college lecture circuit to discuss plagiarism.  What are we teaching our kids when one of our own does it and has no consequences?
.

It made the Trib

In today's Trib, Much ado about....Mt. Lebanon board chief's blog, Posti (Sorry, I can't call her anything else)

"would be more attentive to citing and linking her material in the future. She said Gillen's call for her resignation was "ridiculous," but not unexpected.
"I think she's called for all of us (on the board) to resign at one time or another," Posti said."

Ridiculous? Take a gander at the latest poll.  I am not alone.

Update August 27, 2011 8:45 AM I changed the date of the poll to close on the same day as the next School Board meeting.


Read more: Much ado about....Mt. Lebanon board chief's blog - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/pittsburgh/s_753219.html#ixzz1W2Cx08Ss

Consequences, not corrections (with more incidents)

Update August 23, 2011 9:53 PM
Steve Diaz and Dale Ostergaard had another email exchange, this time over fear and intimidation on the School Board.

Update August 23, 2011 11:19 AM
Map of US visits since I posted the expose. Don't bother counting; there are 26 states highlighted.  In total, it has been viewed in four countries. 

Update 6:55 PM 
Another example was sent to me.  Keep 'em coming.
http://jposti.blogspot.com/2010/04/plancon-process.html
Description of PlanCon 


Update:  Here is another incident for Mrs. Posti to address.
http://jposti.blogspot.com/2011/04/voucher-bill-passes-appropriations.html 
"While SB1 was originally targeted to families making under $29,000 in failing schools or school districts, as amended SB1 would offer vouchers to families earning up to $67,000, even if they live in top school districts and even if their children have never set foot in a public school." 


Check this one out: http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=208420045843951&comments
 "Where SB1 was originally targeted to families making under $29,000 in failing schools or school districts, as amended SB1 would offer vouchers to families earning up to $67,000, even if they live in the top school districts in the state and even if their children have never set foot in a public school." 


Let's see how many others we can find, folks.

The School Board President has apologized and corrected her Center Court blog to include sources for the three incidents that were exposed on this blog.  She was caught.  So what will become of this?  Probably nothing. Are there any students who were caught plagiarizing?  Were there any consequences? Feel free to comment here.  I am opening this up again to accept anonymous comments, just for this particular subject. If it is appropriate, I will approve it. Parents, we have a School Board President who basically says, "Do as I say, not as I do."  What if you had a child who was caught plagiarizing?  Were there any consequences? There should have been, according to the District website.  How do you feel knowing that your kid paid the price, but the School Board will look away when one of their own does it?

What are the consequences?  The District clearly says that there are severe consequences to plagiarism.  If your child apologizes and makes the appropriate corrections, that's good enough, according to the School Board President.  How many colleges or employers operate like that?  What consequences are in store for Mrs. Posti?

Where is President Posti’s Integrity? (updated six times)

I have received the following document from an anonymous source. Based on this easily verified information, do we want a school board director, the president – no less, of an “award winning” school district plagiarizing? President Posti majored in English. Her livelihood is public relations. As a professional, a parent, a graduate of Mt. Lebanon High School, a school board director, and a blogger, Josephine Posti is a disgrace. How could she, in good conscience, sign this Parent Plagiarism Statement downloaded from the District website at http://www.mtlsd.org/highschool/stuff/plagiarism%20quiz%20v2.doc pledging that her son or daughter is expected to demonstrate academic integrity in all his or her schoolwork?  Where is her integrity?

Rampant Plagiarism by Mt. Lebanon School District Board President Revealed

There have been numerous instances over the last year of Mt Lebanon School Board President Josephine Posti stealing information from websites and posting it on her blog as her own. In the three instances outlined below, I have copied word for word her blog post and indicated in yellow highlighted text where that information was sourced from and the original text of that source. Again, Mrs. Posti has never indicated that her sources were from anything but her own intelligence.

There are very specific documents available on the District website that deal with plagiarism (see http://www.mtlsd.org/highschool/highschoolplagiarismlessons.asp

Grade 11 Plagiarism Tutorial):

Plagiarism (and avoiding it!)

If you intend to pursue a career or an education, you must not plagiarize.

Plagiarism is theft.

Plagiarism is stealing somebody’s idea or words without giving credit to that person. If you do not clearly tell your audience that you were not the person who came up with it, your audience will believe that the idea was yours. You are stealing credit for another’s work.

In the real world, people who plagiarize are punished. The same is true in high school and college. Do not risk your academic standing by not carefully and completely citing your sources. Please refer to the Student‐Parent Handbook for Mt. Lebanon School District’s policy on Academic Integrity, including plagiarism.

What follows are three of examples that were found after only a few minutes of searching.

Complete document is here. 


Update: Direct links to Josephine Posti's blog.
Instance #1 direct link 
Instance #2 direct link
Instance #3 direct link
More can be found on her blog just by searching key phrases on search engines such as Google. 

Update 1:30 pm
I have been told that Josephine Posti has an accreditation in public relations. http://prsa-pgh.org/bio.php?n=150 
From the website, http://www.prsa.org/Learning/Accreditation/ 

What is APR?
APR is a mark of distinction for public relations professionals who demonstrate their commitment to the profession and to its ethical practice, and who are selected based on broad knowledge, strategic perspective, and sound professional judgment.

I do not have a degree in English, journalism, or even fiction writing, but I was able to pass the plagiarism quiz on the District website. 

Update 11:00 pm Screen shots of posts
Instance #1 Mergers and Aquisitions
Instance #2 Act 1 Exceptions
Instance #3 Single Prime Approved 


Update August 22, 2011 Response from Josephine Posti, Mon. Aug 22, 2011 12:07 pm

Dear Mrs. Gillen,
Thank you for bringing that to my attention.  As your anonymous source may have 
noticed, I share information from a variety of sources and endeavor to attribute 
them and include links to original sources.  I've made those corrections and 
provided additional information on my blog.

Best regards,

Josephine Posti
President
Mt. Lebanon School Board
412.667.1479
http://jposti.blogspot.com

Mission: To provide the best education possible for each and every student

Update 12:33 PM

Josephine Posti has entered a new post on her Center Court blog. Corrections 

Update 5:04 PM

http://jposti.blogspot.com/2011/04/voucher-bill-passes-appropriations.html 

"While SB1 was originally targeted to families making under $29,000 in failing schools or school districts, as amended SB1 would offer vouchers to families earning up to $67,000, even if they live in top school districts and even if their children have never set foot in a public school." 

http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=208420045843951&comments

 "Where SB1 was originally targeted to families making under $29,000 in failing schools or school districts, as amended SB1 would offer vouchers to families earning up to $67,000, even if they live in the top school districts in the state and even if their children have never set foot in a public school."