Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Student-First Accreditation

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The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was Delete - as identified below this is spam, created by a banned user while banned, practically a non-article anyway, and the only Keep advocate is a banned spammer. No more time need be wasted on this crap. Guy (Help!) 11:05, 27 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Student-First Accreditation

Student-First Accreditation (edit|talk|history|links|watch|logs) – (View log)

Linda Christas and its subsidiary organizations have been trying to worm their way onto Wikipedia for quite some time now. See: Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Linda christas, Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Linda Christas International School, Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Margaret E. Swanson Scholarship, Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Governor's Opportunity Scholarship, Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/International Association of Schools and Colleges and Talk:Margaret Spellings. This article lists a long string of sources, but... They're all either "Letters to the editor" or "Guest Commentaries" sent to small newspapers scattered here and there. The language is very consistent with the sockpuppet language style present in the previous Linda Christas articles and AFDs. I think it's a fair assumption that the newspaper pieces represent further, off Wikipedia sockpuppetry and therefore are not reliable sources. This is not a notable organization. It exists solely to provide cover for Linda Christas' online tutoring program. - Richfife 15:15, 24 May 2007 (UTC)

  • Delete per nom, fails WP:ORG, WP:V. Like nom, I went through all of those alleged links, and they're all letters to the editor to small town weekly paper websites. This also fails WP:COI, as this is the sole Wikipedia activity of the creator, User:SarahThompson, the same name credited on most of the letters to the editor cited. One wonders if she is really, as she claims in those letters, a retired schoolteacher with terminal cancer.  RGTraynor  15:47, 24 May 2007 (UTC)
  • delete as spamvanadvercruft. AllGloryToTheHypnotoad 16:45, 24 May 2007 (UTC)
  • Delete. It is true not only of the creator, but of all users who have edited the article until it was nominated for deletion, that their edits to this article are their sole contributions to Wikipedia. And "they" give themselves away as sockpuppets by all making the same mistake of including ~~~~ in their edit summaries in an awkward attempt to "sign" them. --Bwiki 18:10, 24 May 2007 (UTC)
  • Delete per nom; one must, I suppose, admire the LC folks for their persistence, if for little else... Robertissimo 19:42, 24 May 2007 (UTC)
    • Thanks for spotting this article and pointing it out, by the way. - Richfife 03:18, 25 May 2007 (UTC)
      • Comment. The link from the LC homepage that led me to the article has now been pulled. Remarkable coincidence? Robertissimo 03:29, 25 May 2007 (UTC)
  • Speedy Delete per nom. Same topic has been deleted numerous times, no reason to keep it on for another week. Malc82 23:14, 24 May 2007 (UTC)
  • Comment As an administrator serving in a major public school district, I don't see how Wikipedia can be complete regarding educational theory without this entry.

However, that said, this is your publication, and if there are users who are offended by this information for some reason, then have at it. It is a rare publication that allows users such freedom. A caution though. In a discussion with Senator Goedde of Idaho yesterday regarding Student-First Accreditation, I referred to Wikipedia. The Senator was very emphatic in his view that Wikipedia is not a reliable reference source. I was surprised by Senator Goedde's firm opinion regarding Wikipedia's reputation for arbitrary inclusions and exclusions. Deleting material such as this entry would simply confirm the Senator's view in my mind.--Dr. Bob Moore 00:43, 26 May 2007 (UTC)

Are you guys serious As usual you guys don't have a clue in terms of what you are doing. Linda Christas has offices all over the world, and they encourage students, teachers, administrators, friends, etc who wish to speak publicly about Linda Chrsitas to send messages through their Central Desk. As a result, many if not most of the postings on Wikipedia would look to be from the same virtual source. I think you guys are tripping over your own cynicism. It won't hurt Linda Christas, but you sure as heck don't look very smart out there. I suppose when a publication like this allows folks off their meds a bit of power, this is what happens. I think I will use Britannica.

Comment. Please, Dr. Moore, assume good faith that the following is not a personal attack, but: are we to believe then, that it is the LC Central Desk (formerly referred to, if memory serves, as the LC Help Desk) that adds the identical tone and phrasing in the writing (including the distinctively idiosyncratic spelling and word choice), the apparently insatiable need to namedrop obscure notables (Efrem Zimbalist, Jr.? An Idaho state legislator?), and the equally apparent inability to review basic WP policies and guidelines on sourcing to understand that what is needed here is some - any, almost, at this point - indication from a reliable source that any of this actually exists outside the LindaChristasverse? Robertissimo 08:01, 26 May 2007 (UTC)

It's hard to grant good faith intentions to anyone who would call Dr. Paul Davies an obscure notable. All of the people listed on the Linda Christas web site www.lindachristas.org, both their honorary chairs as well as their Advisory Committee, have certainly made their mark in the world. Dr. Davies of course has worked with people like Stephen Hawking, is an internationally respected author, and has won the Templeton Prize (bigger than the Nobel), and Efrem Zimbalist Jr. is a Pulitzer Winner. Why anyone would suggest that these kinds of people are obscure notables is a mystery, and all have lent their names to Student-First Accreditation. We won't mention Pat Boone here (I just did) because Wikipedia has done a marvelous job of emphasizing some really slanderous and false rumors regarding Mr. Boone. Regarding the question of style, there are two or three editors at the Central Desk who will massage material (with the permission of the original authors) so that the intentions of the authors are clear. Therefore, I suppose that some of the material being edited in that way would show some stylistic similarities. At any rate, people of WikipediaLand, you will do what you will do. In this kind of discussion, Linda Christas could resurrect F.D.R. or Shakespeare as testimony for the quality of their political science or English programs respectively and the editors here would find a way to challenge. No company, school or entity is going to be able to publicly show images of notables without their specific (written) permission. That the commentators here will not accept the material presented using a modicum of common sense is unfortunate, but not unexpected. I second Dr. Moore's opinion above. I am glad to see that there is an outlet for this kind of verbiage that is relatively harmless. My vote is to keep the Student-First Accreditation listing. It belongs in any publication that wishes to be thought of as an "up to the minute" reference.—Preceding unsigned comment added by Dr. Bob Moore (talk • contribs)

  • Comment. Your endorsement of Dr. Moore's position might have more weight if you weren't, well, Dr. Moore yourself. Or is it that pesky Central Desk again? 08:39, 26 May 2007 (UTC)
    • Comment Thanks to Dr. Moore for overturning even the slightest doubt that this article and everything written in its defense is written in bad-faith, well aware that it violates WP guidelines. Malc82 12:27, 26 May 2007 (UTC)
      • Comment Efrem Zimbalist Jr., according to his article, is an actor and producer. The Pulitzer was the Pulitzer for Music for a 1950 musical he produced. How does producing a musical for which someone else writes very good music make him an expert on this topic? Dr. Davies' Templeton Prize for "trying various ways for discoveries and breakthroughs to expand human perceptions of divinity and to help in the acceleration of divine creativity" is a pretty obscure award that no one except some evangelicals would call "bigger than the Nobel", although he at least seems to be notable. Malc82 12:49, 26 May 2007 (UTC)
        • Reply Linda Christas apparently spams notable people all over attempting to get them to endorse them no questions asked. During one of the previous AFD's I tracked an endorser (Alison Jiear) down outside of Wikipedia and explained to her the situation. She had only been spoken to very briefly (a couple of minutes) and barely remembered endorsing them at all. When she tried to speak to Christas directly to find out more, all hell broke loose. Here's her take on it after Ronald Bernard went on a rampage about me poisoning her mind or alienation of affection or something: [[1]]. - Richfife 15:26, 26 May 2007 (UTC)
  • after this AfD, permanently block all IP addresses/blocks involved in the spamming - There. Consider that an addition to my previous vote above. AllGloryToTheHypnotoad 11:36, 26 May 2007 (UTC)
  • Delete, Christascruft. That "Sarah Thompson" must be really busy, considering how many small town newspapers she spammed with the same letter to the editor. And how ironic that the other supporter for Student-First Accreditation, Leone Parette, also happens to live in Sacramento, just like Sarah "Sally" Thompson. Corvus cornix 16:29, 26 May 2007 (UTC)
    • Oh, and by the way, Linda Christas' address appears to be in Sacramento. How coincidental:


Linda Christas
1731 37th Street
Sacramento, California, 95816
Phone: 916-798-1304
Fax: 916-736-3359

Corvus cornix 16:42, 26 May 2007 (UTC)

Honestly is there no end to this. Sally Thompson, Leone Parette, and Claudette Manet are all in Sacramento being treated on an outpatient basis by the Mercy Hospital Cancer Center. They were invited to the Linda Christas facility BECAUSE they have been supportive of Student-First. Why in the world would your editors jump to the conclusions they do without asking anyone who knows. How rude. Just an example of smart people having too much faith in their own intelligence without bothering to ask anyone or TRUST anyone with first hand experience.

'PLEASE DELETE this entry. Wikipedia really doesn't deserve to be dignified with anything accurate.

—Preceding unsigned comment added by Dr. Bob Moore (talk • contribs)
You still haven't told us what school district you are associated with and what your doctorate is. Please point to a website with your CV on it so we can determine for ourselves your credentials. Corvus cornix 18:27, 26 May 2007 (UTC)
Comment It's pretty hard to trust someone who posted an unsigned comment to "second" his own one, especially if the topic defended is one of the most obvious cases of sockpuppetry I've ever seen. Malc82 18:35, 26 May 2007 (UTC)
Well, given that Moore's been indef blocked for sockpuppetry, I don't think we'll be hearing more blowhard "defenses" from him.  RGTraynor  07:00, 27 May 2007 (UTC)
Comment. Ah, but we might well hear from Sarah, Leone, or Claudette... Say what you will, LC does have a way with character names. Of them all, Ethel Strom was possibly the most vociferous; Opal Chan played upon one's heartstrings; and George Stanton had a marvelous harrumphy-Colonel Blimp style that was memorable. Robertissimo 09:22, 27 May 2007 (UTC)

This is funny. All of the "Student-First Accreditation: Recent Print Mentions" are letters to the editor and "guest columns" by Sarah, Leone, Claudette and Linda's Dean. Corvus cornix 18:54, 26 May 2007 (UTC)

The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.