Strother for School Board
Leaving aside, for the moment, that I believe the problem with public education to be the architecture and not the implementation, those are some pretty darned good ideas, Strother.
Unfortunately, the Stokes County schools are operated as a petty feudal fiefdom.
The school board members, none of whom could find their own butts, even if provided a map and a flashlight, believe themselves to be minor celebrities of a sort. They couldn't be bothered to discover the bothersome details, such as what a school board member is supposed to do or how a public education system operates in North Carolina. When asked, they will perkily relate how much they want to make things better for the "cheeldren" and how they would love to accomplish world peace at the same time. We would be better off if we elected five members of the staff of the nearest "adult entertainment" establishment to the school board. I once took a copy of the section of the NC general statute relating to the duties and responsibilities of the Superintendent to one of the school board members. This member asked me if I was sure that we were allowed to look at that.
That leaves the running of the system to the administrators and that's where the fiefdom enters the picture. When Ron Carroll was an administrator, the system was run on pure fear and intimidation. Any teacher (and sometimes any parent) with the temerity to question the "wisdom from on high" would find themselves surely and swiftly dealt with. Teachers would be reminded that they could find themselves being transferred to the school of their least desire or being forced to coach seventh grade volleyball. If the offense was suitably severe, no warning was issued and the teacher was cast into the jaws of the dragon immediately. Parents who served on the various window-dressing committees who asked too many pesky questions suddenly found themselves missing from the invitation lists to the committee meetings. The Stokes County schools have been such for so long, I suspect I would find little changed today.
The truth is, the Stokes County schools could do exactly what Strother suggests without asking for a single extra dime of current expense budget. It would require them to reduce the administrator-to-teacher ratio and get rid of numerous nonsense positions and programs not related to classroom activity. In short, they need to strip the bureaucracy and that is precisely why it will never happen.
So when are you moving back to Stokes County to run for the Board of Education, Strother? I'll vote for you. Heck, I might even put your sign up in my yard.
Unfortunately, the Stokes County schools are operated as a petty feudal fiefdom.
The school board members, none of whom could find their own butts, even if provided a map and a flashlight, believe themselves to be minor celebrities of a sort. They couldn't be bothered to discover the bothersome details, such as what a school board member is supposed to do or how a public education system operates in North Carolina. When asked, they will perkily relate how much they want to make things better for the "cheeldren" and how they would love to accomplish world peace at the same time. We would be better off if we elected five members of the staff of the nearest "adult entertainment" establishment to the school board. I once took a copy of the section of the NC general statute relating to the duties and responsibilities of the Superintendent to one of the school board members. This member asked me if I was sure that we were allowed to look at that.
That leaves the running of the system to the administrators and that's where the fiefdom enters the picture. When Ron Carroll was an administrator, the system was run on pure fear and intimidation. Any teacher (and sometimes any parent) with the temerity to question the "wisdom from on high" would find themselves surely and swiftly dealt with. Teachers would be reminded that they could find themselves being transferred to the school of their least desire or being forced to coach seventh grade volleyball. If the offense was suitably severe, no warning was issued and the teacher was cast into the jaws of the dragon immediately. Parents who served on the various window-dressing committees who asked too many pesky questions suddenly found themselves missing from the invitation lists to the committee meetings. The Stokes County schools have been such for so long, I suspect I would find little changed today.
The truth is, the Stokes County schools could do exactly what Strother suggests without asking for a single extra dime of current expense budget. It would require them to reduce the administrator-to-teacher ratio and get rid of numerous nonsense positions and programs not related to classroom activity. In short, they need to strip the bureaucracy and that is precisely why it will never happen.
So when are you moving back to Stokes County to run for the Board of Education, Strother? I'll vote for you. Heck, I might even put your sign up in my yard.
posted by Anonymous | 1:29 PM
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