A letter from the BCCT today:
How can they run a school if they can’t run a meeting?
Regarding the Feb. 27 meeting of the Morrisville school board: I found it interesting that in the public comment portion of the meeting, when people were trying to figure out why it would cost so much to dissolve the $30 million bond, board President William Hellmann said, “It is too complicated to explain here.”
He did make an offer to explain it in private.
How as a resident and taxpayer can I get that information — and the explanation should be public record and explained at a board meeting in detail.
The new school board ran on a platform to save money and now it will cost the borough another $2.4 million (as reported in the Feb. 28 Bucks County Courier Times). This “new” board and its president showed that they cannot conduct a proper meeting — how are they going to run a school? Has the board ever read the Morrisville schools mission statement?
Hellmann has created a new fiefdom in Morrisville.He continues to go around the board members by acting on his own with his own agenda, as pointed out by several board members and by the board’s legal council, Thomas Kelly.
I applaud Robin Reithmeyer, Edward Frankenfield and Joseph Kemp for not following Hellmann and the other members of the board and actually speaking their mind for the good of the children and the residents of the borough.
The question that we have no answer to as of yet is, “What is the plan for the schools in Morrisville Borough?” Does anyone see that we are in a Catch-22 here? No school plan = lower property values = more rental properties = less involvement in the community = less tax base = HIGHER TAXES for all. Good schools mean families moving in to the borough and getting involved.
Mr. Hellmann, what is your plan? Please tell us; we are waiting.
David H. Masse` Morrisville
Thursday, March 20, 2008
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5 comments:
Here's one fromn a story today in the Metro about Philadelphia's move toward green schools. We were so close: "Research indicates that children educated in green classrooms score as much as 20 percent higher on standardized tests and report fewer problems with asthma. While the schools cost about 2 percent more than regular schools, districts typically save about $100,000 annually – roughly enough to pay for two more teachers."
Yesterday, I heard a report on NPR about New Orleans neighborhoods recovering from Hurricane Katrina. Not surprisingly, the places where quality schools have been established have had the most success in rebounding. Families want to live in these neighborhoods and pride in the community exists.
The financial situation in Morrisville is complicated - we have a small system that still must (and should) meet the same requirements as larger public schools, and this costs. We have poor tax revenues due to lack of a sufficient business base.
There is no easy or popular answer, but the role of board members is to make informed decisions. The recent actions of this board majority suggest that this has not occured.
Many disagreed with the plan to build a new school. But, the decision was made after studying the whole picture through state evaluations and a series of detailed feasibilty studies over nearly a ten year period. Over time, the cost savings incurred by operating one campus with more efficient systems would have reduced the tax burden.
Several of the board members who voted for the new school plan had been elected with the determination to do no such thing. But they studied the facts, considered alternatives, and changed their minds. Others had looked at this situation over the years and reached the same conclusion. The main difference is the cost keeps going up.
To perform their jobs with due diligence and provide for quality education for the students in their care, board members have to stand up for what is right for the children, not what is politically popular. Plans and decisions may differ, but at the very least, proper homework is done first.
In this situation the majority appears content to pander to the will of one self-appointed expert. Mr. Hellman is one person, and has circumvented his board, but the majority have allowed this to occur. Did those who voted for defeasement even question the cost before the votes were cast?
There is simply no evidence of due diligence on the part of the board majority in the defeasement decision. They did not weigh the options or bother to understand the enormous impact. And. Mr. Hellman continues to flout his responsibility to make public this information, which should have been public to begin with.
We can only speculate what the long-term ramifications will be to the community and the schools. I'm not convinced that the board majority pondered that question, at all.
I don't know the gentleman who wrote the letter (at least I don't think I do), but it was spot on. Nice job!
It's the W school of governing, just say it with conviction, and it must be so. Unfortunately, we don't even get that. We get mumbling, shuffling of papers, and lame excuses that he can explain "In private." What about the position, the board, and the deliberations being public does Mr. Hellman fail to grasp? He can't really be that stupid (Or can he?), so the only answer is sheer arraogance.
"it was spot on"
SHOUT it out!!
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