Ferndale Patch welcomes letters to the editor.
The following was submitted by Ferndale Board of Education member Chuck Moeser.
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The reason I support the CBE candidates for the Ferndale School Board, is as simple as Councilman T. Scott Galloway’s reasons. Over the last 22 years of elected service on the School Board I can honestly say that Keith Warnick, Katrina Collins, Jim Pfleger and Brad Parks have 10 times the School related experience of the other candidates and are ready to serve. Look at the record over the last 10 years: worked with the community supporting 2 successful bond issues (some of the opponents recommended against the bonds), balanced budgets year after year, supported programs that have improved student achievement test scores, introduced new innovative educational programs, saw the high school named as a reward school by the state, worked together collaboratively instead of a confrontationally, focused on what is right for ALL the students not just the few who have left and above all, made the tough, difficult decisions in the light of ever increasing reductions in state funding, a loss of over $470/student in the last year, to bring us from the brink of bankruptcy to a general fund of over $4,600,000 and a full service school District. The Superintendent is doing exactly what he was hired for, is recognized by his peers and has positive performance ratings from all 7 Board members. So Mr. Councilman, critical decisions have been made.
The School Board and the City of Ferndale have met at least 3 times during the term of Mr. Galloway and he only attended one meeting. There is no record of the concerns he mentions. The biggest topic raised by the City was for the District to move their elections to November. Why wasn’t the Councilman forwarding his concerns to the School Board or better yet, bringing those concerns to the regularly scheduled School Board meetings where the public is always invited to speak? After all, the School District sends a representative to every Council meeting. Maybe the Councilman should attend Board Meetings or the Superintendent’s Advisory Committee, of which he is a member, and work with residents, board members, administrators and staff, that comprise the District committees.
CBE has successfully endorsed the majority of School Board candidates, including 6 of the 7 currently seated. CBE interviewed all eight candidates looking for good, experienced, ready-to-serve individuals, something I don’t believe the Councilman did. Mr. Galloway and other City officials were invited to a meet/greet for the CBE candidates and declined to come. I also wonder if the Councilman listens to residents’ complaints about the city, and enacts change based on those complaints without consideration of the effects on the entire City. I think not.
To quote Jim O’Donnell from a published 2010 election letter: “…a school district that has improving academic performance, is financially stable … has superb music ….and honors programs … the result of our current School Board”. “We need experienced leadership.”
This district does deserve more and will get more with the above experienced candidates.
Chuck Moeser
Ferndale School Board Member
http://ferndale.patch.com/articles/ferndale-residents-disappointed-in-school-board-move-to-november-elections-6-year-terms
Why is it that you claim that myself and my fellow community members are the uninformed ones? Just because they might not align with what your beliefs are does not make them UNINFORMED!
Darcey, more citizens than BOLD have asked questions for years without satisfactory responses. I've written letters and articles asking questions both privately and publicly without satisfactory responses. I've waited weeks for responses to emails that either dodged the questions or spun the answers. There are many great things happening in the district, but there are great things that happen in many districts -- even Detroit Public Schools. Yet despite DPS' achievements and awards the second largest district in the state after DPS is students leaving DPS (according to Robert Bobb). So there must be something else parents and voters are looking at beside the district's press releases that factors into decisions for 623 students (31% of in-district students) to leave FSD . It's true 1720 incoming students outnumber outgoing students nearly 3-1, and so FSD has a strong appeal to students from Detroit (1084), Oak Park (366), and Southfield (87). Maybe parents are uncomfortable with the apparent strategy of balancing FSD's budget with dollars from students attending University High and Taft. Maybe residents are queasy with the thought the district doesn't spend all of a Taft or UH student's state-aid dollars on the student, but instead uses the money to pay for athletic and other programs at the "core" schools.
If you have followed this, the finger pointing has come from the group trying to get their slate elected on many unfounded facts, poorly defined plans and loosely based claims that the current board is not doing their job. My hope is that people will still going to get out and vote and not make a poorly informed emotional decision on who should be on the board.
If you could post examples of comments you feel are negative and without merit, that would be helpful. Without examples the complaints are difficult to weigh.
From an outsider's point of view, it just looks like a bunch of back-and-forth. This would be excusable for, say, the Presidential election, but I feel this overall hostile election only serves to divide the community. My overall point is that infighting won't do our children any good. We all want what's best for our community, and it's hard to see what that is when everyone is at each others' throats.
There will always be division regarding important matters, but just because there haven't been physical threats of violence doesn't mean that this hasn't been an unpleasant election cycle for people to witness. Quite frankly, you're guilty of using ad hominem yourself, what with calling people such as myself lazy and apathetic. Nathan has the right idea. People are turned off, and certainly not because of laziness or apathy. We get more than enough negativity from other campaigns this time of year, and it's concerning and sad to see it coming equally from within our own community. So please, tone down the hostility. I care about the community, that's why I'm voting. That's why I encourage everyone to vote- and to remember that ultimately we're all on the same side.
I just want to remind EVERYONE that on November 7th we will all still be neighbors, we will have to work together on committees and in groups, our kids will have to attend school together and we will see each other in the community. PLEASE stop all these lies and rumors.
I never said anyone's opinion was wrong and I would not say that. Everyone has the right to disagree and as long as it's done in a respectful manner then people should be willing to accept that which I will and do. So many times that this issue has been out on the forefront it's the people who are not actively involved in the district as us that are causing the caustic enviroment. Those that are creating these issues, are standing on the sideline or back of the room and chirp out just to hear themselves are not involved in meetings, committees or sending their children to our district, but out of district. True on November 7th we all will still be here to work on things for the betterment of schools and the children as we should no matter who is elected.
So when you say, that no one is involved, no one has any idea what is going on in the district or how things are run, you are just not telling the truth. I am begging that this stop.
As for me, I have been trying to keep it positive, although at times I have to bite my tongue or sit on my hands to do so. I think all eight candidates are good people. I think all eight candidates have the best interests of the schools and students in mind. Seriously, these people are vying for an often thankless, time-consuming VOLUNTEER job! I commend all of them for raising their hands to do so. Thus, I won't use this forum to spew lies about any candidates, nor say bad things about anyone personally. I will say that I am personally supporting the CLEAR slate of candidates because I like that they want to ask tougher questions, retain students and be more connected to the community. I don't believe they have a radical agenda to turn this district upside down and chase administrators and students out of town. I've heard it from each of their mouths...we have a really good district, they just want it to be great. Here is the one negative thing I'll say that just might anger all sides: Roll Tide!
So? Does it make sense to dismiss their concerns simply because they don't attend meetings? This is one of the problems folks have with the district BEFORE they leave. They attend meetings and are ignored. They write letters and are ignored or patronized. The attend a board meeting and are sneered at, and so they leave because others may listen to them, or offer what they're looking for. Experience isn't all the status-quo crowd makes it up to be. Experience knows how to listen. Experience knows how to recognize problems. Experience has an open mind. Experience also knows how to defend itself without attacking others as inexperienced, uninvolved, or sitting on the sidelines. These aren't arguments, they're name-calling. And with experience like that, no wonder 31% of in-district students leave for other districts, and other folks go even further and move out of the district. A much bigger message is sent, but no one seems to bother reading it.