Key issues are facilities planning, enrollment growth, and our
strategic plan. The important element in addressing these issues
will be the processes we follow. We must re-establish effective
decision-making, informed by good lines of communication. My experience
in the district will help frame issues effectively and identify
the relevant experts and stakeholders to bring into the process.
By acting with the best information considered in a timely manner,
the board can develop fiscally responsible, comprehensive, long-term
solutions and win back the community's trust.
2. What steps need to be taken to foster better
communication among the school board, superintendent's office,
and local school management?
The new "Protocols" recently adopted by the board and
superintendent delineate their roles and relationship to each
other. The spirit of these rules, and the earlier recommendations
for improving relationships with principals, must be implemented
in a manner that supports a transparent, two-way flow of information
and a collaborative approach to decision-making. The relationships
and trust that I have established while working in numerous roles
across the district will facilitate our progress towards better
communication.
3. What approaches would you support to help
all students achieve their educational goals, whether they are
college bound or not?
We teach to the student, college bound or not. Our current strategic
plan calls for "appropriate challenge [so that] every student
makes at least a year's growth each year." As an educator,
I have directed efforts in our schools to assess each student,
to teach to their needs through differentiated instruction and
other approaches, and to assess their growth. This system is effective
for all students regardless of their educational goals.
The approaches I would recommend and support are:
* Develop additional assessment tools (beyond standardized tests)
to measure what matters and to better diagnose
and inform teaching
* Organize, maintain and utilize a K-12 portfolio of qualitative
and quantitative assessment data for each student
* Enhance teaching strategies to meet all needs and learning styles;
consolidate best practices in the core curriculum
* Offer additional high school program choices
