To Victoria and anyone who gives a report on a public meeting they’ve attended, I want to say THANK YOU for posting a report. I can’t make it to most of these meetings and the school takes months to post the minutes so I appreciate this. Also, the official board minutes DO NOT include the eye rolls, pencil tapping and general rudeness that oozes from Maureen Child’s so I read them with a grain of salt.
I downloaded this pdf you posted. A report called “Public Good vs. Private Profit Imagine Charter Schools, Inc”.
I found some similarities to our own charter/public situation. Here are a few quotes from this I wanted to share.
“even as many charter schools boast their smaller size as an educational advantage over traditional public schools, schools managed by Imagine schools, Inc. clearly see larger enrollment as the path to financial viability.” “The reliance on increasing enrollment to eliminate deficits seems to have taken a toll on the academic performance of Imagines’ schools” (There is a chart showing how the academic performance declines as enrollment increases) ME - Sounds similar to the focus of our own school board and administration these past 2 ½ (or more) years; A focus on the bottom line at the expense of our small community school.
The director/owner of these publicly funded yet ‘privately run’ charter schools encouraged his employees to “disregard and minimize the power of appointed school boards. School board members have resigned in frustration over what they describe as cooperate disregard for the governance role. We finally concluded that what was desired from the administration (of the school) was for the school board to be a rubber stamp rather than a governing body” said one former board member interviewed for this study. “The school wanted YES men around the table”. ME – If you have seen our school board in action the past 4½ years (maybe longer?) this is a good description of what I have witnessed.
ME- I can remember when Dunton wanted a “rent reduction” for his charter school. This was when he was on both the Charter and Public school boards. He convinced most of his board to give him this reduction. He didn’t get it, because of community pressure. He wanted NO transfer students to be allowed into the district. All but 2 of his board (including the 3 incumbents who are up for renewal of their board seats) voted to give him his way, and then later voted to change it because of community pressure.
I think all 3 of the current board members who are up for reelection have become or have been “yes men” (women) rubber stamps. Please read the Board Policy for community relations and ask yourself “Have these board members fulfilled this policy?” If they haven’t VOTE FOR SOMEONE ELSE.
http://policy.osba.org/corbett/AB/AB%20G1.pdfDistrict-Community Relations Goals and Objectives
The Board’s goal of achieving positive district-community relations are:
1. To develop public understanding of all aspects of district operations, ascertain public attitudes toward
issues in education and identify the public’s educational expectations for their students;
2. To secure adequate financial support for the educational program;
3. To help citizens feel responsibility for the quality of education provided by their schools;
4. To earn the public’s confidence with regard to district staff and services;
5. To foster public understanding of the need for constructive change and solicit public advice on
achieving educational goals;
6. To involve citizens in solving educational problems;
7. To promote cooperation between the district and the community and to share the leadership for
improving community life.
Achieving these objectives requires that the Board and staff, individually and collectively, express positive
attitudes toward the schools in their daily contacts with parents, community members and one another;
make systematic, honest and continuing efforts to discover what the public thinks and what citizens want to
know; interpret district programs, problems and accomplishments; develop an active partnership with the
community in working toward improvement of the educational program; and take an active interest in the
needs of the community to find ways to make the community a better place to live.
END OF POLICY
Legal Reference(s):
ORS 332.107
