School board behaves like children

From the Pottstown Mercury.

No, it's not about Morrisville.

School board behaves like children, but fails to lead on their behalf
Sunday, February 22, 2009 6:18 AM EST

The motives of Pottstown parents, community advocates and the school board are said to be "for the children," but this town's behavior, though childish, has little to do with what's best for kids.

In what can only be described as a three-ring circus, the Pottstown School Board on Thursday reversed course for the third time, rescinding with a 5-4 vote its November decision to consolidate elementary education into three buildings and return to the concept of keeping all five elementary schools.

The vote came near the end of a four-hour meeting in the auditorium of Pottstown Middle School, attended by about 200 people and featuring emotional pleas from parents and community leaders on the plan to close two of the borough's five elementary schools and convert a third into an early learning center.

It was the proposed — and already approved — conversion of Edgewood from a K-5 neighborhood school to an early learning center housing 4- and 5-year-old kindergarten programs that attracted the greatest outcry.

The early learning center would mesh with Pottstown's PEAK program, a network of public-private partnerships that has achieved a national reputation for its success as an established early education initiative.

The Edgewood parents, donned in red T-shirts, pleaded with the board to keep their school open in its current form — "for the children." They argued that it is a good school which should not be closed, that the board was ignoring the importance of stability in their children's lives, and that this disruption would be detrimental to their education.

But, others pointed out that schools are not closed because they are bad schools — they are closed because the town can not financially support maintaining five elementary buildings, several of which are in dire need of renovation or rebuilding.

As one speaker pointed out, the former Jefferson School closed some years ago — a blow to that neighborhood just like any other — and children adapted. Their lives were not ruined; their education not destroyed.

Just as passionate as the parents about keeping schools open were several former school board and economic advisory board members who said with vehemence and conviction that the town's finances can not support five elementary buildings.

Lost in the accusatory rhetoric of the speakers was a "clear sense of purpose and vision," as noted by Wendy David, who spoke representing United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania.

David, whose organization just announced a grant in excess of $200,000 for the district's early education program, warned the board against constantly reversing itself: "If the district wants to reap the benefits of outside investors, it needs to pick a clear vision and stick with it."

David is not the only private funder who has cautioned the school board and borough council in Pottstown on the dangers of following a path of constant detour and disjointed leadership.

Her words and those of others continue to go unheeded. Even for this town with its recent years of discord, Thursday night's exhibition was embarrassing. Board members, community leaders, parents, educators — all took personal shots at others, leaving little about their opinions to the imagination.

When the time came for the board members to speak, it was impossible to miss the sniping tone and veiled accusations that preceded their vote — a vote that went backward and undid a positive step they had taken in November.

No matter what this school board decides, someone will be unhappy. They may be parents loyal to their neighborhood school. They may be working homeowners fretting over costs. Or, educators eager to pursue their notion of better learning.

Regardless, the school board — as individuals charged with the goal of reaching a consensus of leadership —bear the burden of dealing with those who are unhappy and making the hard decisions anyway.

Giving sway to the Edgewood parents and neighborhood schools proponents may feel like a victory for some today. But what happens when the costs of keeping open all the schools further drives up the tax burden?

Newstell Marable, president of the Pottstown chapter of the NAACP, made the point Thursday that children are flexible. "They can adapt; it's adults who don't like change," he said.

The Pottstown community, and this school board, demonstrated Thursday that they can behave like children. But, when it comes to making a decision, they react like stubborn adults who cannot agree or take a higher road.

This process of deciding to rescind a decision and go back to a plan that was never a plan is not "for the children." It's just childish.