Reader feedback 9.3.03

‘Business as usual’

Strong Board or Weak Board? There has been little thoughtful
weighing of this question, but the community must understand what is at stake
before any further snuffing out of democracy for city residents in that most
American grassroots institution — the elected local school board.

                  I
write this as a fan of City, with
respect for the proper limits of school-board power (taught by eight years of
board service at Hilton and BOCES) — and with affection for my Democratic
Committee colleagues (city and suburb) with whom I have served for almost 30
years.

                  Bringing
this issue into focus in the primary has been difficult. The party-insider
designees endorsed by City (August
27), admirable qualities aside, are Business as Usual personified. They derive
from an unrepresentative Rube Goldberg contraption of a party-designating
process, driven by anything but the substance of school issues (usually petty
vanities and turf battles). The three challengers, perhaps angry with good
reason, have not worked together when a focused and united reform alternative
was both possible and needed.

                  This
is disheartening. But the City School Board may not matter much anyway.

                  Barely
noticed is a new state law, carried in the State Senate by right-wing
Republican Joseph Robach of Greece, which ought to be called the Incompetent
School Superintendent Protection Act. This law is Smugtown plantation elitism
at its most squalid. It requires a super majority, five of seven board members,
to remove a superintendent. The idea is that city residents just don’t have the
sense to elect board members who can be trusted with the authority they have in
the suburbs. It is ironic that the suburban-dominated County School Boards
Association, which understands how fundamental the selection or removal of a
superintendent is to a board’s important but properly limited role, opposes
this law.

                  Add
to this a conversation in the community that has been stunted by a reluctance
of media outlets (including City) to
follow even the most obvious lines of criticism of the mayor, whose tenure has
been characterized by arrogance as well as talent.

                  Ostensibly
progressive political and media opinion leaders, perhaps embarrassed by the
missteps of a board that Mayor Johnson put across earlier, are playing right
into the hands of the Aubergers and Minariks by accepting the depiction of the
city as incapable of self government.

                  Ask
yourself: would Susan John, who voted for this bill, impose this restriction on
school boards serving her Chili constituents? If Robach tried to impose a
super-majority limit on the Greece school board, despite all the financial and
credibility issues they have had, Greece residents would chase him out of town
with pitchforks.

                  Bill
Johnson’s cause would be better served with a renewed spirit of democracy in
the local Democratic Party. Education would be best served by nonpartisan
school-board elections, taking hacks out of this process, and inviting citizens
concerned about education in.

                  The
best start toward understanding between city and suburb would be the
recognition of one obvious truth: The meltdown in the Rochester School District
these past two years did not result from too much citizen input, or too much
school-board scrutiny of the superintendent.

                  Tom Brennan, Lakeview Park, Rochester

Religion in school

Regarding your school board endorsements (August 27): I
agree with your choices of Malik Evans and Willa Powell . Both are strong
choices.

                  Shirley
Thompson is also a good choice, but I have issues with her response to a survey
conducted by the Monroe Coalition for Democracy. She favors teaching
creationism alongside evolution. She also walks the line on prayer in
classrooms, favoring “an allotted time for silent reflection.” If
silent-reflection time is set aside, it opens the door for prayer in the
future. Separation of church and state was still in the Constitution last time
I checked.

                  David
Perez chose not to respond to our survey or to our follow-up inquiries. Silence
is not an option when running for public office.

                  To
get more information about MCD and to view the responses of all the candidates,
check our website at http://ggw.org/mcd.

                  Jeffery Young, Strathallan Park, Monroe
Coalition for Democracy

From Eagle

I believe citizens will demonstrate their agreement at
voting booths on September 9 regarding the need for a “new look”
relative to the Rochester Board of Education. However, any old “new
look” (in and of itself) will not produce significantly improved academic
achievement on the part of massive numbers of City School District students.

                  Significantly
improved academic achievement is the bottom line of my campaign. This is not an
easy or simple task. Producing change and improvement will require bold,
knowledgeable, committed, and yes, passionate, leadership and expertise.

                  To
successfully “challenge the [deep-seated] board culture” and produce
much-needed change and improvement, we can no longer afford to rely solely on
guesswork and experimentation. It is critical for education leaders to
demonstrate that we know and understand, specifically, what needs to be done in
order to produce change and improvement.

                  Based
on the past 16 years as a City School District teacher and 20 years as a
community activist, unlike all of my opponents — I have a crystal-clear
understanding and a plan regarding academic improvement. I am the only
candidate in the school board race who has produced a concrete plan for change.

                  Please
feel free to contact me for a copy of my 8-point Platform and Working Program: heagle@rochester.rr.com.

                  Howard J. Eagle, Rochester

Hope, with Eagle

I believe that the future of this city is bright. I haven’t
felt that way in a long time.

                  With
each passing year, the social disintegration has worsened, destroying any semblance
of the high quality of life that once existed. The filth, squalor, disrepair,
and abandonment are so sad to look at. Drugs, crime, economic terrorism, and
social institutions have worked hand in hand to bring about this destitution.
For far too long, there has been an era of unaccountability, with barely a
protest from our local leaders, save perhaps for Louise Slaughter.

                  But
it appears hope has a new name. It is Howard Eagle.

                  His
poignant commentary (“Don’t Rely on Suburbs,” August 27), summed up the
obstacles the city is faced with, while offering solutions that redirect our
focus within, as opposed to waiting for “answers” (money) from without.

                  He
has a firm grasp of the big picture that precious few leaders possess, let
alone have the courage to express. It is precisely that courage to speak hard
truths that I believe City misinterpreted
as “anger overwhelming argument” in dismissing Mr. Eagle in its recommendations
for school board.

                  Nevertheless,
I commend City for granting Mr. Eagle
the space to express his views. I believe the city will benefit greatly from
his intellect and insight, regardless of whether he is elected to the school
board. I am confident that his diligence and passion will be rewarded. I only
hope it’s sooner rather than later.

                  Jim Muhs Jr., West Irondequoit

‘Vote the slate’

I want to thank City for its endorsement (August 27). Although my father would disagree that I am
“not a firebrand”, your description accurately captures what the outside world
sees. I prefer to describe myself in affirmative terms, such as a “quiet
revolutionary”!

                  I am
especially encouraged that you supported the whole designated slate. It
confirms that the (small ‘d’) democratic process employed by the Democratic
Party, culminating in the May convention, is capable of identifying
best-qualified candidates.

                  There
is an implied message in your endorsement as well: that teamwork is needed
among board members. The four of us have been sharing viewpoints, developing
common goals and campaign themes, ironing out differences, and providing mutual
support ever since the convention defined us as a slate. This effort can only
make us better board members when we are all elected. I ask the Democrats of
this city to reward our commitment to teamwork by casting their votes for all
four of us: Shirley Thompson, 4B; David Perez, 5B; Willa Powell 8B; and Malik
Evans, 10B.

                  Willa Powell, Canterbury Road, Rochester

This article appears in Sep 3-9, 2003.