Willyard: We The People

So far in 2010, there have been a lot of people complaining about the state of our Towns, Boroughs, School District, Committee’s, Councils, etc.

What people are not saying, is the majority of the time, they have had the opportunity to change the way things are done but failed to do so.

When we become lazy or worse yet, apathetic, or when we expect that others will have the good sense and morality to do the “right thing” that’s when things begin to deteriorate. Sometimes these things happen so slowly that we don’t at first notice the route events are taking and then suddenly we find ourselves in a hole that we can’ t possibly dig ourselves out of, at least not alone.

Everyone needs to get together on the same page and speak up about the wrongs that are being forced upon the majority of our citizens. We all need to do our due diligence and not expect that someone else will take care of it. Haven’t you heard the expression “God helps those who help themselves”? It is about time for each and every one of us to begin helping ourselves out of the tremendous mess our school district, towns, county, and country is/are in.

There are complaints aplenty about transparency, shady dealings, illegal activity, hidden agenda’s, takeovers, kickbacks, side deals, etc. But you know what? We have nobody to blame but ourselves. Here is an expression that fits pretty well for our region: “If you do what you always did, you get what you always got”.

There are several times we have opportunities to change the way things are done. One of those times occurs in the month of November most years. If officials are not changing things over a course of years on a council or board, if positive changes are not taking place in our communities, then why are these people continuously put into these positions of power? Why is the public voting for them or maybe even worse, not voting at all?

Sometimes, it’s not a matter of why are people voting for them as much as it is a matter of who is running against them in the polls. Where are you, the people, at a time when your town, borough, county, library, sewage authority, school board needs you?

Everyone has an opinion on the way things are done, but why is nobody stepping forward and volunteering their time and not just their opinion? Where are you, the people, at a time when your town, borough, county, library, sewage authority, school board needs to hear your opinion? Why are you not at the meetings? You have these opinions, why are you not publicly stating them to the people that need to hear them the most? Just like an employee with bad performance, until they are written up, they do not change. Just like a child that is misbehaving, they will push the buck until finally you put a stop to it.

Don’t think that your vote doesn’t matter. IT DOES! Some of the current offenders currently in office got there 8 votes…yes 8! EVERY VOTE COUNTS! It takes mere minutes out of your day to make a positive impact on your community! Please get out there and make an informed decision by exercising your right to vote or stepping forward and being that person to vote for!

As a great man once said “Our lives begin to end the minute we become silent about things that matter….” Reverend Martin Luther King

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WILLYARD: Mission Possible

The last time the ASD School Board adopted a mission statement and goal, it was 2003. We think it can be agreed upon, that there have been vast changes in the past 7 years.

It would be thought, with a large organization such as the Pennsylvania School Board Association behind it, our board would look to them for guidance and assistance in their policies and endeavors.

The PSBA adopted their 5 year strategic plan in 2007. What is wonderful about their plan is they clearly outline their goals:

• Determine PSBA’s role as the lead public education association
• Develop programs to recognize and promote effective governance
• Ensure PSBA has expertise to implement strategic plan
• Enhance member participation in PSBA governance, advocacy and related activities
• Expand consulting services to school boards and management teams
• Develop a fully integrated communications function for all audiences
• Increase utilization of PSBA programs & services
• Be the leader in school insurance
• Diversify PSBA’s revenue base
• Ensure sound administrative procedures & controls
• Establish education research & policy analysis center
• Strengthen advocacy impact

As stakeholders in our district, we would like to know if our school directors are taking advantage of these services. One item in particular that the PSBA was working on was “Expand consulting services to school boards and management teams”. Has our board taken advantage of this? Has the board had an independent entity come in to see how they are doing? How they are engaging each other? How they are engaging the community? How they are engaging our children?

Our district has again adopted the PSBA Effective Governance Standards, but are they putting the work into that? Do they truly know what the Effective Governance Standards are?

Are they taking advantage of the training and events that the PSBA offer? If they are, then hopefully our directors attended the Symposium of Education Issues that was held July 11-12 in Gettysburg. Hopefully they listened as former Pine-Richland School District Superintendent Dr. James Manley addressed them. Perhaps they heard him state “There is no room for big egos in a learning organization. Superintendent and School Board members are dependent on one another to lead the district. How this relationship goes; so goes the district. What they do, how they act, what decisions they make and how they handle conflict sets the tone for the school district.”

Maybe one of Dr. Stan Chapp’s first objectives once he takes over the reins of our district is to truly evaluate it. Take a page from Trinity School District that had Dr. Manley in to do an independent audit of their district. Our board did not want to listen when Dr. Kerr spoke about change, perhaps an independent audit of our districts workings could help. Spell out the things we are doing right. Spell out the things we are doing wrong. Offer some guidance and help.

LINKS:

Trinity Area School District “A Journey Toward High Performance Schools

http://www.trinitypride.org/files/258002/A%20Journey%20Towards%20High%20Performance%20Schools.pdf

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