From the Cranky e-Mailbag…

Well kids, it’s time to look in the old e-Mailbag and see what we’ve got…Hey! it’s more about The Gate!

Let’s read, shall we?

After reporting The Gate’s closure on Sunday I received this letter from the Parks&Rec guy:

What day did you encounter this staff member and are you saying the gate was locked over this past weekend ? Because my staff member (__) opened the gate on 12/15/06, Friday at 2:20 p.m., I drove by there at 4:15 p.m. and it was still open. During school hours the gate can be kept locked for security, it’s in the out of school hours it should be opened.

my response:

This was yesterday. Sunday 12/17 approx 10 AM. I got his name if you want it. I don’t want to badger the people that are just doing their job, but I always ask their name and why they won’t unlock the gate.

his response :

Yes, I want his name, the school administration needs to know. I have staff driving by this gate 5 days per week and we made sure it was unlocked late Friday afternoon. So sometime between 4:15 on Friday and 10 a.m. on Sunday the gate was locked. I’m also copying A_ R_, Assistant Principal at Sahuaro on this email, he needs to know who from the TUSD staff keeps locking this gate. Please include A_ on your response email so he can get the employee’s name.

PS. A_, maybe the staff are confused between it being locked during school time opposed to out of school time?

me:

Sure - his name is __, he just happened to come and unlock the driveway gates when I was there. Just to be clear he didn’t lock the pedestrian gate at that time, it was already locked. I asked him why the pedestrian gate was locked and he said they’re told its supposed to be locked. Coach B_ has told me the same thing when I’ve asked him about it, he said its supposed to be locked, although that was quite a while ago that I talked to him.

him:

Thank you, we will pursue this information (that Mr. __ stated) with the High School Administration staff.

then from A_ R_ Asst Principal:

The only thing I can think of is that TUSD School Safety is coming by and locking the gate when they see it unlocked. No one on our custodial or security staff is here on the weekend, so if your staff member unlocked the gate, and you checked it, it has to be TUSD School Safety. I have copied P_ M_, of TUSD School Safety, so he know about the situation regarding keeping the pedestrian gate open on the weekends and after school.

A_ R_
Assistant Principal
Operations

Anyone want to do an over/under and how long this passing of the buck at TUSD can go on? How about another say…6 months?… We’ll see. I’ve already been through this with them. I think the Parks&Rec guy is getting tired of it already…