Castle Vale School and Specialist Performing Arts College is a secondary school located in Castle Vale, Birmingham, England. The school has been awarded specialist status as an Arts College.
The school opened in new premises in 1967. The buildings were completed and officially opened in 1969. It was built to serve the large new housing estate which was in the final stages of construction at this time, and now has Performing Arts specialist status.
At the time of its last OFSTED inspection in early-2007, there were a total of 876 students.
In 2012, NASUWT staff took strike action against management practices at the school. A one-day strike was held on March 7th, 2012 which stimulated action by the Local Authority to resolve the problems. However, further strikes were held as the School NASUWT representative was singled out by the Head for speaking to the media and another member was sent on gardening leave. In May, the Head resigned and the school started the procedure to become an academy.
The school has been subject to a furor regarding the new head teacher, Charlotte Blencowe, implementing "tinkle cards" permitting children to leave class a maximum of once per week to go to the toilet, a number of different hand signals to communicate in class and a strict policy over school uniform. Parents protested, and eggs were thrown at teachers.
The school suffered further uncertainty when AET arranged for Miss Blencowe to leave after only one term to move back to Yorkshire. Their reasons were contradictory, confusing and does not indicate particularly skillful or caring management. The school will be managed nominally by Mr Simon Turney and his team from another AET Academy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgrave_High_School) for at least one, possibly two, terms.
Now to be known as Greenwood Academy.
Famous quotes containing the words castle, vale, school, specialist, performing, arts and/or college:
“This castle hath a pleasant seat; the air
Nimbly and sweetly recommends itself
Unto our gentle senses.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“There is not in the wide world a valley so sweet
As that vale in whose bosom the bright waters meet;”
—Thomas Moore (1779–1852)
“In truth, the legitimate contention is, not of one age or school of literary art against another, but of all successive schools alike, against the stupidity which is dead to the substance, and the vulgarity which is dead to form.”
—Walter Pater (1839–1894)
“... to a specialist his specialty is the whole of everything and if his specialty is in good order and it generally is then everything must be succeeding.”
—Gertrude Stein (1874–1946)
“More than in any other performing arts the lack of respect for acting seems to spring from the fact that every layman considers himself a valid critic.”
—Uta Hagen (b. 1919)
“I should say that the most prominent scientific men of our country, and perhaps of this age, are either serving the arts and not pure science, or are performing faithful but quite subordinate labors in particular departments. They make no steady and systematic approaches to the central fact.... There is wanting constant and accurate observation with enough of theory to direct and discipline it. But, above all, there is wanting genius.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“[B]y going to the College [William and Mary] I shall get a more universal Acquaintance, which may hereafter be serviceable to me; and I suppose I can pursue my Studies in the Greek and Latin as well there as here, and likewise learn something of the Mathematics.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)