The INDsider -> The Independent Staff MON, JUN 1 5:22AM by IND Monthly Staff

CABL urges support of reform bill

(Editor’s Note: The following letter by Greg Davis, regional vice president for the Council for a Better Louisiana, urges lawmakers to vote in favor of House Bill 851, one of four school board reform bills filed for the spring legislative session and the only one still alive. HB 851 will be debated on the House floor Tuesday.)

On the issue of school board reform, chambers of commerce and economic development groups from across the state have lined up to back legislation at the Capitol this session. This includes our own Greater Lafayette Chamber of Commerce.

Why is the business community standing together on a non-business issue? Because they know the value of public education and its impact on the workforce. They want our public schools to succeed. They want all of our children to graduate and to perform at grade level. They understand how this affects our local economies.

I was discouraged to read in the coverage of the committee hearing that many school board members oppose this much-needed change in how their boards operate. This bill will help to make them more efficient, more transparent, and able to focus on school and student performance.

Some argued the bill unfairly targets school boards, blaming them for Louisiana’s lagging education statistics. Instead of focusing on blame, I hope school boards will join this effort. Not all boards need these changes, some operate very well – they hire the superintendent and leave them to make decisions, run the district, and be accountable if the outcomes don’t meet goals.

Not all school boards operate this well, and because the current structure allows the opportunity for any board to micromanage, it must be changed. If everyone is in charge, no one is in charge. Can you imagine being a superintendent, judged on how your district performs when you aren’t in sole control of running it? Do we want the athletic booster club choosing the football players and then firing the coach when the team doesn’t win?

The legislature needs to pass this bill so our superintendents can be in a better position to help our children learn and be clearly accountable for results.

—Greg Davis, Regional Vice President, Council for a Better Louisiana

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written by Just Curious , June 01, 2009 - 06:02 pm

Would Greg Davis be as likely to want to cut the power of locally elected school boards if the Lafayette Parish School board wasn't demanding that the Cajun Dome pay back taxes it owes? Why does business and chamber interest in school "reform" always correspond to what leads to lower taxes for businesses the members own? (And so indirectly leads to higher taxes for the rest of us.)

Greg Davis has recently come to the elected officials of this community (including the school board) asking for yet another handout for the Cajun Dome. He is not in a great place to advise on those same public officials on best management practices.

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written by Amused , June 01, 2009 - 09:18 pm

Again, a call for changing school boards to give our kids "a world class education" (according to Pastorek) -- without any explanation of how changing the number of votes required to fire a superintendent will change one single thing in one single classroom. If we want to give our kids a world class education, let's institute changes that have worked elsewhere. The school improvement we all want is within our reach -- if we're willing to foot the bill. And it has nothing to do with how many votes it takes to fire a superintendent.

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written by Gary McGoffin , June 01, 2009 - 11:54 pm

In the nine years that I have been actively involved with the Lafayette Parish School System, the benefits of the provisions of HB 851 have become increasingly apparent. First, the selection of the Superintendent by a super-majority rather than a simple majority will necessarily result in a broader consensus on the appropriate hire. The same will be true in the event of termination and will help safeguard against punishing a Superintendent for doing the "right thing" that may not be politically expedient.

Second, taking the School Board members out of the direct control of operations will assure that the professional educators control that function. The School Board should set the community's goals by which we can evaluate the Superintendent's performance.

Third, removing the School Board members from operational decisions will reduce the current time demands of the office and open the doors for a broader range of candidates for the office.

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