I am confident we all want the same thing from our school district: successful students. I’m sure everyone would agree that good teachers, staff and administrators are essential. So the debate isn’t about the end goal, it’s about how to get there.
The BCSD board of trustees ultimately determines that path. In the BCSD Staff Engagement Survey, only 21percent of respondents said they feel a strong sense of teamwork among the board of trustees – a dismal approval rating.
This begs the question: Who do we want to lead our district?
There will soon be an opportunity to choose. Trustee Freund from Zone 3 has stepped down. Idaho Code requires the board to fill this position within 90 days of announcing the vacancy. Ideally, a well-qualified Zone 3 resident will apply and be appointed so that residents from all five zones will have representation on the board.
The Coalition for BCSD Accountability, a small but vocal group, will be seeking an applicant to support their views. The Coalition’s Jeremy Fryberger told me he believes the current school district leadership team is “morally and ethically corrupt”. People who know them would find that hard to believe. He added that it may “be time for a different approach.” The Coalition›s approach is clear. They harassed and insulted Mike Chatterton, the district’s business manager for 29 years, until he retired early. They regularly sent disparaging emails to the board, exacerbating Trustee Freund’s health problems until she had to resign.
The BCSD board’s Code of Ethics does not allow trustees to have a hidden agenda or to surrender their judgment to special interest groups. Yet Trustee Corker exchanged 364 pages of emails with the Coalition over just 10 months last year (see BCSD Public Records Request, 12/11/2015). The Coalition and Trustee Corker have insisted that the district be transparent. Yet the Coalition’s own membership and mission are opaque – see their website: www.coalitionbcsd.com. The Coalition and Trustee Corker demand that the district be fiscally responsible. Yet when Superintendent Holmes painstakingly and successfully led the district to balance the budget for the first time in years – as directed by the board – they have ostracized and harangued her. Even worse, Pamela Plowman, Barbara Browning and the Coalition have just filed a frivolous (i.e., expensive) lawsuit against the district.
Trustee Corker claims to put students’ needs first, yet promoted adding Syringa as an innovation school at a cost of over $2 million this year and $1.3 million/year thereafter. Trustee Corker and the Coalition demand good leadership. Yet their disrespectful treatment of the administration at board meetings and in the press has the entire staff on edge, and is making hiring a new business manager extremely difficult.
So who DO we want to lead our district?
The Coalition would have you believe that there are only two options: either you agree with their agenda or you don’t care about students.
Ridiculous.
I believe that choosing to treat each other with respect will lead us to actually respect one another. Having respect breeds trust, which facilitates constructive debate. That will improve our district far more successfully than anger and animosity.
Please consider carefully who you want to represent you. This appointment can tip the balance of the board. Be vocal. Engage others in the community in a discussion, and be willing to listen. Embrace differences of opinion. Invite a rational debate. And above all – communicate with the board. Make sure your voice is heard – not just the angry extremists.
To learn more about nationwide challenges to improving school districts, I highly recommend the book “Schools Cannot Do It Alone,” by Jamie Vollmer. Join the conversation.
Lara Stone
Blaine County resident