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about 3 minutes ago
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about 11 minutes ago
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Will somebody please think of the children? |
 | By Bobby Tanzilo   Managing Editor E-mail author | Author bio More articles by Bobby Tanzilo |
| Published Aug. 25, 2009 at 11:23 a.m. |
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As a new MPS parent, trying to figure out the basics of starting school is hard enough. Staying on top of the misinformation and lack on information flying around at the moment about Wisconsin's largest school district seems nearly impossible without making a full-time job of it.
The mayor, governor and state's superintendent of public instruction want to take control of the school board and replace its elected members with appointed ones. Maybe it will be successful, maybe it won't. Apparently, this has occurred in other cities and the jury is out on whether or not it works.
What we do know -- and presumably all agree upon -- is that the current set-up is hardly optimal.
Some say that the plan undercuts the democratic process because the school board is elected. Doesn't that fact that almost none of us votes in the school board election do as much to poo-poo the idea of a democratically elected school board?
On the local news last night, some shouted that the plan was racist because the school board president is African-American (two of the other eight board members are also black) and the mayor, the governor and the superintendent of public instruction are white.
A fifth grade MPS teacher with three kids in the district -- who is African-American -- was also interviewed and said she thinks race is beside the point. Something needs to change, she said, so why not give this a try.
Others said it was racist to continue to let MPS students down.
One angry woman who opposes the plan said the school district is 90% African-American. This morning, a newspaper column said that, in fact, 57% of MPS students are African-American. Slight difference there.
How can anyone be expected to craft an informed judgment with this kind of conflicting information in the air?
The whole thing is starting to feel like what the media is charitably calling the "debate" about health care reform. While those with an agenda stretch and bend the facts to suit their positions, uninsured Americans still lack good access to health care.
While Milwaukeeans argue about who (to say nothing of which race) should (wo)man the controls at MPS, Milwaukee's kids remain powerless and trapped in the middle.
Black, white or other, that's a tragedy.
Having grown up as an entirely public schooled kid and a resident of one big city or another, I'm committed to MPS. You can't be a part of the victory if you remove yourself from the game. I'm extremely happy to be a parent at a great MPS school. I hope I can continue to say that.
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6 comments about this article. Post a comment / write a review. |
Recent Talkbacks ...
Posted by PlayerGotGame on Aug. 26, 2009 at 3:13 p.m. (report)
The problem with MPS isn't funding, the teacher's union, facilities, or organization. The problem is that so many of the students come from broken homes. No mayoral or gubernatorial takeover can fix that.
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Posted by jjrakman on Aug. 26, 2009 at 10:07 a.m. (report)
Was it really necessary to interject an unrelated comment regarding the health care debate? And why is it charitable to call it a debate? Because you only want people to discuss exactly how far left you want to take government run health care without any opposition? What happened to dissent being the finest form of Patriotism? Os is that kind of patriotism for dissenters only reserved for leftists? Also, everyone has an agenda. I know, I know, you think that the word agenda sounds nefarious. Boy, are you an imbecile.
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Posted by ChateauDweller on Aug. 25, 2009 at 4:51 p.m. (report)
I think if MPS just implemented a policy of doing exactly the opposite of what the teachers' union wants, the kids would be in great shape.
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Posted by buck on Aug. 25, 2009 at 12:35 p.m. (report)
Statewide elected officials should have no say in appointing memebers because their constituency is so much larger that they can't be held accountable by the electorate for their picks. However, I have less of a problem with board members appointed by citywide elected officials, as the consituencies overlap and they can be held accountable by the electorate. And for the people crying racism...do you honestly think that they won't appoint any black members to the MPS board when 57% of the students are black? Of course they will.
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Posted by CarolV on Aug. 25, 2009 at 12:13 p.m. (report)
Something has to give. The current system obviously isn't working. Big things need to change for MPS. Not sure if this is it, but its worth a shot isn't it? I haven't heard any other major alternative shakeup plans for corrective action. Last I checked, more people turnout for Governor and Mayoral voting than School Board position voting. I don't buy the anti-democracy argument personally because of this. I think extreme times call for extreme measures. My kids go to MPS schools too. I want the best for my kids. It would be up to the Mayoral and Governor elections to get diversity in those posts. Also, appointments from any Mayor should show racial balance and innovative leadership then--at that point, people could pick apart that process. If the kids are in everyone's best interest, and our current board isn't promoting the drastic changes that are required, let's give another system a shot. It really can't get much worse, can it? I want the MPS system to be the BEST public school system in the country. I think all of us can agree on that. We need a cash infusion, a flexible teachers' union and a major reorganization to have a chance. Get off the political pulpits and get on to the business of making positive changes already.
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