This move comes after 3 years, and over a half a dozen presentations to the Board by parent advocate Deborah Wells to do just that-establish such a group. Wells has been relentless in lobbying for a Citizens Advisory Committee and it appears that it will soon become a reality. Based on the belief that parents have a natural right to direct the education of their children, such a committee will allow parents to have meaningful input into the governance of our district. Until now, the Board has rejected Wells' proposal, based on the Board's desire to retain all control and relegate parents participation to helping with homework and fund raising activities.
Deborah Wells and board member Watson should be thanked for leading this effort. A committee will be formed consisting of Watson, Angerett, Giesler and Thompson to establish this Parental Advisory Committee.
In Another Moment of Clarity......
Through the had work and lobbying efforts of Katherine Gardner and other members of Citizens for Safe Schools, the Board has decided to finally act on their recommendations and hire a security consultant to assess security needs of all the schools in the district. This has been put off too long by our district - and the recommendation by Citizens for Safe Schools to have this type of assessment done was made long ago.
Why has our Board finelly decided to make the security needs of our children a priority at this time? Simple. Last night Mr. King, our solicitor, informed the Board that they could be held legally responsible if there was a problem and they hadn't taken steps to provide a safe environment for our children.
Even though Ms. Gardner and other parents have been concerned with building security for years, it took the Board thinking they could be sued to take their concerns seriously. Is there no shame?
Our know it all Board has decided to not hire a security consultant to provide the district with a comprehensive security plan and risk assessment because the costs would range between $3000 and $18000 depending on which consultant they hired.
Apparently our Board has decided to leave it in the hands of board members Youngman, a grumpy old man, Smith, a funeral director, and Geisler, someone who works out of his home with a fax and a computer.
Geisler, suggested this brilliant idea based on his opinion that the consultants' findings would be too expensive and take too long. Yeah right! Like our board can do anything quickly, not to mention they know nothing about security risk assessment.
The Board has, however, hired a consultant to do the security at Har-Mer and the Middle School as part of the upcoming renovations. Adams doesn't like this plan either. He claims that the consultants hired to do these two schools are liberals because of their views of the events at Columbine HS. But, despite his objections, Har-Mer and the Middle school will have professionals designing the security systems at these two schools.
It's comforting to know that we have a Board who is so versatile and all knowing. They don't need professionals to design curriculum - after all, they are eager to throw out all the work the teachers have done and instead implement the conservative's darling "Core Knowledge". And does Chapter 4 have any educational benefits? Who cares? Everyone else in Western PA opposes it - that's good enough for our Board. And mandatory homework - once again, our Board knows best.
We can all rest easy knowing that the security of our children is in good hands.
LINKS PHONE NUMBERS PRIVACY VIOLATIONS SAFETY UPDATE BOARD SCHEDULE
THIS JUST IN!