Christina Board of Education - The script never changes!

As someone who has attended meetings school board meetings in several states and served on two such boards I know the routine well. The meetings of the Christina Board of Education follows a long established tradition. The administration carefully choreographs every step to minimize any risk of being embarrassed.  Board meetings are indeed choreographed. I'm sure there is a desire to minimize the embarrassment factor, but the meetings follow a predictable format to ensure the structure that prevents the meetings from becoming a free-for-all. As far as that embarrassment may seem to be an issue, the CSD board has always been especially skilled at embarrassing itself. As a former board member, it's true, whether or not individuals chose to admit it - we open our mouths and insert our feet. 

There the usual awards recognitions for students and staff. Often this is the most fulfilling part of the entire meeting. By the end of my four years, this was truly most rewarding part of the evening. Next there is public comment. Here you, the public, can make statements that are met with contemptuous silence. The silence is entirely by design.  The board cannot respond to every single person, individually at the meeting, who chooses to speak. CSD already holds the state record for the longest board meetings in history. However, there is also logic behind this policy - board members frequently are hearing one side of a story for the first time when a parent speaks at pubic comment. Good, bad or indifferent to the story, diligence requires that we hear both sides and realize that the truth minus the emotion usually lies somewhere in between the two. Notably, the current superintendent has been empowered by the board to facilitate introductions between commenters and district staff during the meeting to help begin the process of addressing concerns. And of course, if you go back to the embarrassment quotient, CSD board members frequently violate their own rules and speak to the commenters. Oh, if you say something that makes the administration uncomfortable the sound recording of the meeting is mysteriously “lost” and even the minutes are written so as not to reflect the topic of your statement. As one of two board members who fought to get CSD meetings recorded, this statement saddens me.  During my time - from the commencement of recording to the end of my term on June 30th - CSD had only one meeting where we encountered audio problems that prevented recordings.  And the policy directs that the meeting occurs regardless of whether or not the recording equipment is operating - the meetings proceed b/c the work that needs to be done is usually tied to deadlines, many of which are imposed upon the district by outside agencies such as DOE, state law/regs/code, etc. 

Harry does earn a pass on audio quality - sometimes speakers just can't get their mouths near enough to the mics and that makes some files hard to hear.

Next there are the reports of various committees, some relevant while others are smoke and mirrors. Finally late in the meeting there are items that may require some discussion. The administrations hopes that by this time most of the public has left in case there is, God forbid, any discussion. I don't know what the admin thinks, but genuine board members and there are few on CSD's board want the public to stay for the discussion.  Trust me, it would make our lives a lot easier if they did!

As I said, I’m accustomed to the script used at schoo l board meetings. I don’t like it and when I had the opportunity I did all I could to change it. Of all the statements made at the meeting the most asinine is “YOU ARE OUR GUESTS”. This grand pronouncement by the board president at the beginning of every meeting is ignorant, insulting and......WRONG! To each his own. I see this statement as a reminder that the meetings have structure and need structure.  It also delineates the monthly board meeting as different than the public forums and workshops that the board holds where the public can participate freely, rather than observe as they do at the monthly meeting.

Public meetings of the Christina Board of Education, or any other public body in Delaware are public meetings. You and I have every right to be there and the school administration knows it. Of course as with any right it can be abridged for creating a disturbance, hindering the orderly conduct of the meeting etc. Yet, the statement “YOU ARE ARE GUESTS” is fundamentally a lie. The “YOU ARE OUR GUESTS” declaration is intended to intimidate, it has no other purpose. Disagree. But, again, to each his own. I don't take the statement personally, not as a parent/member of the public before I ran nor after as a district parent now.

To be sure there are quests at every meeting of the Christina Board of Education. These guests sit at a table with nice name plates in front of them, these guests are the members of the Board of Education. They sit there as a guest of the people who elected them and the children they are supposed to serve.. Every so often we need to be tell them “YOU ARE OUR GUESTS.” Disagree.  The folks with the goofy name plates (and you made me think that I should have kept mine - I totally forgot to ask for it when I retired) were elected to do a job.  They are on that stage trying to do that job. Yep, they serve at your pleasure. And if you don't like their performance, you can fire them every five years on a rotating election schedule. And there have been some that I would have loved to fire. 

Perhaps, Harry, it's time to throw your hat in the ring and put your boardsmanship experience to good use - win and reform the board. 

Harry