Ferndale Patch welcomes letters to the editor.
The following was submitted by Ferndale City Council member T. Scott Galloway in response to a previous letter to the editor on school board endorsements.
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The reason I support the BOLD candidates for the Ferndale School Board is simple. When I first ran for Ferndale City Council eleven years ago the top concern of residents was our schools. After almost three terms on Council the top concern of Ferndale residents remains our schools.
During this time most of the individuals elected to Ferndale’s School Board were endorsed by CBE, the same political action committee that supports BOLD’s opponents in this election.
A decade is more than enough time to effect transformative change within an organization yet I hear the same complaints about Ferndale Schools in 2012 that I heard in 2001: unsatisfactory test scores, the perception of poor academics, and a School Board that demonstrates both a bunker mentality toward residents of the District and a “go along to get along” relationship with the Administration that rarely results in a critical analys is of the Superintendent’s policy initiatives.
If the School Board has been unable to transform the school district during the last decade, then I have no confidence that we will experience dramatic change in our district by electing yet another slate of CBE endorsed candidates.
Ferndale needs a school district that the whole community is proud of, a school district that draws people to our city rather than driving them away and a school board that unites rather than divides our residents. Ferndale wants more than mere financial stability from our school district. Ferndale expects more from our schools and we deserve more.
The BOLD candidates may not immediately have all the answers to the District’s challenges, but I am absolutely certain that if elected they will ask the tough questions that have been avoided for far too long. I am not alone in my support of BOLD. Elected officials and more than 250 individuals from all four communities within the District have publically endorsed Amy Butters, Jim O’Donnell, Raylon Leaks-May and Kevin Deegan-Krause. Rather than a conspiracy or an attempted coup d’ etat from City Hall, perhaps the endorsement of so many elected officials is simply a recognition that it is time for a change on the Ferndale School Board.
T. Scott Galloway
Councilman
City of Ferndale
As you mention schools should be "a top concern for residents" as well as "I have no confidence" Yes this should remain and be a top concern since we are talking about the future of our children as well as that of our cities. It's true and as it is in any city without good stable schools you don't have financial stability in city government which very is apparent just to our south. You mention transformative change that should have occurred with in that decade. By definition "The act or an instance of transforming, the state of being transformed" Transformation can occur suddenly or it can take a longer period to occur. I wonder if the citizen's of Ferndale think your 11 years have provided the right transformation of Ferndale? Many probably agree but I'm sure there are those that do not.
Just last night at the School board meeting the accounting firm Yeo &Yeo provided the state mandated audit presented the results of the Ferndale district. Comments by the firm is that they are very impressed with how the districts financial health looks. Many districts look to Ferndale to model after them and provide direction to them. Improvement in scores and academics are occurring and will continue to do so with the fact that the districtwide practice of work shops and meeting occurring every Monday in the schools as well as parental involvement. Students participating in extracurricular activities on a free basis when so many are doing a pay to play approach.
To say that pride is only from one group is incorrect! The pride that this community has for the district is overwhelmingly evident at many events and by how much those that volunteer countless hours to support the children of this district to make it a better place for everyone. There have been discussions on retention, given the current state of economy in S.E. Michigan and the diverse population of our district there has and will be continued movement in and out of the district. I hope that we continue to do what we have done best over the years is manage the district responsibly and in the best interests of the children. BOLD has asked questions and as you mentioned will ask questions but as you said "The BOLD candidates may not immediately have all the answers to the District’s challenges" So when will we get those answers? As many voters should do before casting a vote is to be informed and right now the CLEAR backed candidates have not informed us of what the plans are. I will place my vote confidently!
No matter how good a school or District is it can be improved and I think the BOLD candidates are more likely to produce greater results faster than the CBE slate of candidates.
I know many, many individuals and couples (with and without kids) who won't buy a house in Ferndale because of the perception of the schools. Those without kids eventually do want kids, and don't want to feel they have to move when that day arrives. Those who are thinking of moving here are doing so by saying "my kids are already in private school, so the schools aren't an issue." If it is "only" a perception issue, it's a doozie of a perception. I'd love to be proud of the district and I hope that in a few years, I'll send my kids to it. However, I just don't have the confidence to do that now. That should concern any candidate for the board- and shouldn't be dismissed as "well, trust me, the district is great," which is the response I've gotten when I've asked questions.
I as well as many others don't consider the district to be in survival mode! Financial stability is a key foundation to the rest of progress. With that in place we are emerging and moving forward as we need to, maybe not the speed that everyone likes but we are making progress in the right direction and will continue to do so unless derailed by undefined plans. I'm just not sure what the plan is other than to keep asking questions and not providing any real solutions as some candidates are doing.
I do not regret for one day sending my daughter to Early Pre-school at Grant, Pre-school and eventually to Roosevelt. As long as I live in the district, I know that my daughter will proudly move on to attend Coolidge, The Middle school and Ferndale High School. My nephew was a graduate of the Ferndale district just this past June (with honors) and he went thru K-12. He was in the district back in the day when things were not as good as things are now. He was accepted and attends U-M so that should have something to say about the quality of education he received from the Ferndale Schools. Perhaps a discussion about your concerns would help.
What I want for your kids, my son and the rest of the children in the District is a school board that does more things to make life within our schools easier and better for the families that attend Ferndale Schools. For those District families that don't have children in the schools yet, I want our schools to be their first choice. For families that are looking at different options of where they want to raise their children, I want Ferndale to be high on their list and not to written off immediately. Isn't that what we all want? From my time on Council, I know that who is leading an organization matters. I don't believe the people from CBE are bad people. In fact I personally like all of them that I have met. I simply believe that the BOLD slate can do a better job taking the District to the next level of achievement.
You seem to be dismissive of the school board asking questions of the Administration and demanding answers. You seem to place no value on collecting information to better understand and address the challenges of the District. Why? It seems to me that the challenges faced by the District directly stem from this type of approach to governance by the current Board.
I am very surprised by "your" statement that I'm dismissive! I fully support the school board asking questions of Administration and getting answers to those questions as well as the public who ask those questions as well. I collect information review it and make informed decisions to understand the challenges of the district. While I do not claim to be an expert in all matters I think I have enough facts and knowledge to understand that we need to move forward and do what is in the best interest of the children of this district.
You are always so polite after I have been rather blunt. In a larger sense I think what has become the focus of our schools and what we today call education, has left us unable to not only meet the challenges we face but to avoid trouble in the first place. As I have said before I think Ferndale may very well have a unique and solid foundation that encompasses so much more than just raw academics. I think we are educating in the larger sense of the word students who will go on to be more qualified to meet the challenges that we face now and will face in future. These challenges are going to require creative thinking and new ideas AND a strong ability to cooperate with all kinds of people with differing backgrounds and views. Without these qualifications if you will, I think it is rather apparent what we are left with, and then we are left to inevitably, decay on a scale I think we will find shocking and frightening. We are not lacking for brains so much as we are lacking in wisdom and the ability to put ourselves in other peoples' shoes and find workable solutions for a good majority of us the majority of the time.
When I talk to parents, I do hear positive stories about the schools- the problem is they are all subjective. I need data. I can't rely on "the teachers are great." In all seriousness- there is no "unit scale for greatness." What does that mean? I need to know what the standards are for achievement, and from the conversations I've had with school leaders and others, achievement isn't part of the conversation. I'd love to hear more discussion and see more transparency about what the inside of Ferndale classrooms look and sound like.
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