Maine ASCD Weblog

Angus Chimes In

Monday's Portland Press Herald published a commentary by former governor Angus King about the current governor's plan at district consolidation.

You remember Angus King, he was the governor who ran on a platform of reducing government waste and spending and introduced the concept that State government could be improved (replaced?) with technology. And he did what he promised and the number of state employees did go down. And technology was introduced. But I also remember this same Angus King to in a moment of resignation admitted that "Mainers like expensive education."

What he was talking about is his frustrations at reducing local spending on education. So, it should be no surprise that Angus loves Governor Baldacci's proposal.

The commentary is more than just an endorsement of the Baldacci plan. There is actually some substance here that should be read carefully. And that is the issue of "local control;" the argument that appears to be at the nexus of this debate.

Here's what he says:

But what do we really mean by local control? What is it that we want to control? Do we really need to "control" the paper work and accounting? The bus drivers' contracts? Vacation policy for the support staff? The filing of facts and figures required by the state or the feds?

Isn't how our local school works what we really care about? The bus routes, the school rules on athletics or substance abuse, the teachers' connections to parents and the community, the educational philosophy? This is the local control that counts and it can be accomplished at the school level, no matter what the overall administrative structure is like.

But what do we really mean by local control? What is it that we want to control? Do we really need to "control" the paper work and accounting? The bus drivers' contracts? Vacation policy for the support staff? The filing of facts and figures required by the state or the feds?

Isn't how our local school works what we really care about? The bus routes, the school rules on athletics or substance abuse, the teachers' connections to parents and the community, the educational philosophy? This is the local control that counts and it can be accomplished at the school level, no matter what the overall administrative structure is like.

This is an important distinction. Read the whole article

~John Brandt

Teachers' Blogs

I know, a change in subject. Finally.

This commentary is based upon a report in the Houston Chronicle about teacher blogging. Apparently it is now becoming all the rage.

I can remember when I first started this blog about two years ago and was looking for other educational bloggers, it was pretty thin pickings. In fact, if you look at the blog rolls on the side of this page, you will see some of the very first teacher/educator blog I found. Some are still around, some have disappeared. I probably should clean that up.

The Chronicle article might actually strike fear into those educators who have delved into this brave new world. Indeed I read a blog entry from an educator the other evening in which he shared a rather onerous memo from the school district attorney about all the do's and don't of blogging. I seem to recall that there were a lot more don'ts.

This current article would support some of that. At issue is whether the educator's blog is a valuable expression of ideas and issues or whether it is just a place to vent - or "rant" in the blogosphere vernacular.

The blog has become for some the proverbial "soapbox" with may bloggers simply ranting about anything they are currently upset about. I guess we all need to rant from time to time, but as one crafty administrator told me the first year I was working in the field, "When you say something people will likely forget what you've said. But when you put something in writing, it becomes permanent." Wise words that I have lived with these past 28 years. Perhaps that should be the proverb all bloggers should live by.

Read the whole article from the Houston Chronicle.

~John Brandt

It's Not That Bad

Today's Maine Sunday Telegram also has a column by Paul Farhi of The Washington Post (requires free registration) which challenges the complaints that U.S. schools are failing and that American students are falling behind those in other countries.

In the article Farhi doesn't suggest that the U.S. is leading the world, but is perhaps "holding its own." He also notes that complaints about American schools have been perennial. My favorite quote:

Education researcher Gerald W. Bracey cites a March 1957 cover story in Life magazine -- at the height of post-Sputnik paranoia over Soviet scientific prowess -- that contrasts the stern, rigorous education of a Moscow teenager (complicated physics and chemistry courses) with the carefree lifestyle of a Chicago youth (rehearsals for his high school musical). The cover headline: "Crisis in Education."

The lack of respect for the work that American teacher are doing has clearly been a byproduct of this discussion. I can think of no other profession that has been so consistently criticized for the past fifty years. It's no wonder educators'  skin may be a little thin....it's been beaten on for so long.

~John Brandt

Letters to the Editor

I can't imagine it is fun being the editor of a newspaper whose job it is to read the letters to the editor. But, I must admit I enjoy reading them, particularly when there are reactions to deeply  controversial issues.

Such is the case with today's Maine Sunday Telegram where readers have begun to deluge the newspapers with their reactions to the news of the Governor's district consolidation plan. Note: The on-line version of the MST does not print the letters to the editor; you'll have to go to your newsstand.

To say the responses are strong would be an understatement. And I must credit the editorial staff for its evenhandedness in choosing equal numbers of pro and con letters.

My favorite is from a writer from Cornish who believes that the consolidation plan is due to the war in Iraq. My second favorite is from the writer in Rockland who advocates decreasing teachers' salaries in Maine as a way of reducing costs.

The bulk of the letters express ideas and beliefs that are "passionate" yet may be of questionable accuracy.

At the public sessions being held around the state this past week with the Governor and Commissioner, apparently passion and accuracy has also been apparent. It's clear that this topic has struck the nerve of many, but it will require cool heads and accurate data to resolve. One of the reasons why our democracy utilizes representative legislative institutions and not one giant "town meeting" is in an effort to ensure some decorum in debate. This issue needs to be decided with logic and honest debate, not passionate rhetoric.

That said, the Legislature's Appropriations and Financial Affairs and Education and Cultural Affairs Committees have announced that February 5th will be the day for public testimony on the topic. The Committees will hold the sessions from 9:00 am until 8:00 pm at the Augusta Civic Center. Should be an interesting day.

~John Brandt

One Stop Shopping

If you need to see a listing of all of the various reports, proposals and related positions, critiques and assorted news/media reports on the whole school district consolidation issue, Bar Harbor School Committee member Brian Hubbell has produced just the thing. He has developed a website called mdischools.net which lays it all out pretty much in chronological order. A fine resource for those looking for information. Thanks, Brian!

~John Brandt

Is Bigger Better?

Colleague Jim Burke has posted some research references that really call into question the issue of large schools and districts and whether they really improve education. Is Bigger Better? A Comparison of Rural School Districts by The Center for Rural Pennsylvania

Education on a human scale: Small Rural Schools in a Modern Context by Mike Corbett of Acadia University and Dennis Mulcahy of Memorial University of Newfoundland

Rural School Consolidation Report by the National Rural Education Association Executive Board - April 1-2, 2005

Thanks, Jim.

~John Brandt

And then there were seven, er, six

Just updated this...seems I made a mistake with my arithmetic...there are six proposals now on the table...~jeb

According to the Kennebec Journal (1-26-07) there is now another proposal for school district consolidation on the table. They report, the Maine Heritage Policy Center, "a conservative Portland think tank agrees with Gov. John Baldacci that there's money to be saved by consolidating school administrative services." But they disagree on the how.

The article goes on:

Calling its proposal a "consolidation compromise," teacher and former state legislator Stephen Bowen told a group of Republican lawmakers Thursday at the Statehouse that other states have successfully saved money by creating "education service districts."

At the most basic level, the districts allow school units to choose to work together to save money on transportation, food service, administration, payroll, special education, teacher training and other services, said Bowen, of Rockport.

Local school boards would stay in place, and local school board members would serve on a larger district board to oversee the cost-saving measures.

By my count this is now the seventh sixth proposal. Here is a link to the MHPC report [PDF - requires plug-in]

The Governor and Commissioner visit Portland tonight for the third of their community Q&A sessions; details on the DOE site.

~John Brandt

Reaching Out and Gathering More

Governor Baldacci and Commissioner Gendron held the first of a series of open community Q&A sessions in Lewiston last night. Judging from the media and those in the room, they met a somewhat hostile audience. In reporting on the Lewiston meeting, The Portland Press Herald quotes some of the comments of critics and not surprisingly they are all from attendees who are school administrators or school board members.

The process continues with more meeting this week and next. You can see a complete schedule on the Department of Education's website.

In our effort to continue to provide information about the process and research on consolidation efforts elsewhere, I have discovered the following:

A PDF copy of the report "A Case for Cooperation: Making Connections to Improve Education for All Maine Students" from the Maine Children's Alliance. The MCA have their own consolidation proposal which is based upon this document. The document is located on the website of the Western Maine Educational Collaborative.

A copy of Senator Turner's proposal for reducing the number of School Administrative Units [PDF requires plug-in]

More to come...

~John Brandt

Responsible Government Spending

The legislation by the coalition of the Maine Educational Association (MEA), Maine State Chamber of Commerce, Maine Municipal Associaition, Maine Hospital Association and Maine Service Center Coalition that I referred to the other day has been posted on the MEA website. Called the "An Act to Ensure Responsible Government Spending and Investment," [PDF- requires plug-in] the proposal can be downloaded along with talking points and a legislative summary.

I'll post more as I find it.

~John Brandt

Taking It To The People

The Commissioner of Education is taking Governor Baldacci's plan Local Schools, Regional Support on the road. In a news release, the Commissioner's office announced the intial schedule of four meetings around the state: Lewiston, North Berwick, Portland, and Bangor taking place over the next week.

According to the press release:

Commissioner Gendron will participate in all four forums; Gov. Baldacci will address all but the Berwick forum. Additional forums will be scheduled and will be announced as details are finalized. The initial forums are scheduled as follows:

Wednesday, January 24, 7 p.m., Lewiston Middle School Auditorium Thursday, January 25, 7 p.m., Noble High School, North Berwick Friday, January 26, 7 p.m., Portland - Deering High School Tuesday, January 30, 7 p.m., Bangor - United Technologies Center

We'll try to get out there to get a first hand look, but we have also invited the Commissioner to lunch this Friday as part of the Maine ASCD Board Winter Retreat.

In the meantime, the DOE has been posting a number of questions and answers on their website which is starting to provide some of the substance to the proposal. The hottest question is related to "local control" and the perception that the new plan would eliminate or seriously diminish local control. Here is the question and the response from the DOE:

Question: How can this plan preserve local control when these regional boards will be bigger and most likely controlled by the larger communities?

Answer: Many existing School Administrative Districts have small towns and it is rare that complaints are levied that their needs are being ignored by the district board.  School Administrative Districts have been very good about looking out for all children in the district.

Representation on the new Regional Learning Community Boards will be proportional, ensuring that all citizens have equal representation.  It is also important to understand the budget process:  It starts with the superintendent drafting a budget with input from each building principal, followed by a board vote.  Then the budget goes to a regional budget meeting, similar to a town meeting, where a motivated group of people (such as those in a small town who have concerns about a school or a program) can greatly influence the discussion and the vote.  Then the budget goes to referendum, where every voter in the region will have an equal opportunity to vote.   

The process provides far greater opportunity for individual influence, as compared to municipal districts where as few as seven board members and seven council members may decide the fate of the school budget.

In addition, there will be Local Advisory Councils at every school or for each municipality or other sub-region, as determined by the regional board, which will meet regularly with principals and quarterly with the Regional Learning Community Board to advocate for their local needs/issues.  In some communities, such as Brunswick, these councils have been highly active, well-attended, and influential in supporting and shaping school policy and activities.

The regional boards themselves will be comprised of between 5 and 15 members, with proportional representation.  The size of the board will be determined by the new regional board members.

~John Brandt