More Controversy

How much controversy can one school district generate in one school year?

Well if you are Portland, Maine, I guess the sky’s the limit.

Following the very public scourging that took place this summer after it was revealed that the Portland School District had a bit of a financial problem which ultimately resulted in the resignations of the superintendent and the finance manager, now the same district is embroiled in a new brouhaha. This latest comes from a decision made last week by the Portland School Committee to allow the health center located in one of the district’s middle schools to start providing contraceptives to students.

The firestorm that has followed has involved everyone from the Bishop of Portland, to the governor to national cable news outlets. Everyone apparently has a strong opinion.

You may not find consensus on whether this was the right decision or the wrong decision, but you will find consensus that this was, at the very least, bad timing.

The saddest part of this whole story is that these two controversies have very little to do with education. They have distracted all the attention away from the otherwise good work that so many teachers, administrators, students and parents in Portland are doing to educate the children of that community.

There is another lesson to be learned here. We can only hope that folks in Portland learn it real quick.

~John Brandt