The first thing the British did after helping the Allies to win World War II was to fire the great Winston Churchill, the architect of victory. What quickly followed was Britain’s losing its world prominence and becoming a second tier economic and military power. Britain has never recovered.
Last night's School Committee meeting was once again something to see. It had me thinking of Winston.
Apparently unable to muster a single, useful budget input, Sherry, Jess, Marie and Nancy have decided to delegate the entire budget building process to the one person they have no confidence in and have just fired - Dr. Johnson. Anyone else find this odd?
Anyone besides me troubled by the fact that Committee members still can't read and understand the budget? Some members actually “came prepared” and suggested cutting line items that didn’t actually exist or had current balances well-below what that Committee Person “thought” they were. Other members were entirely unprepared for any serious discussion. Wishing for a wind farm at the High School won't help next year’s utilities budget. Hoping teachers won't be sick won't reduce substitute expenses.
But for the fact that she is a remarkable professional and cares passionately about our kids and our schools, I can't understand why Dr. Johnson would help these folks. Maybe, like me, Dr, Johnson recalls Churchills’ famous admonition: “Never give in, never give in, never; never; never; never give-in nothing, great or small, large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense”
After Dr. Johnson helps dig these folks out of the enormous financial hole they’re in, then what? Kick her out like Britain did Churchill? That’s still the plan? Anyone else find this odd?
20 comments:
I find it very odd Mr Guerin and disturbing. It just proves yet again what many of us have felt since the elections. That certain members of the current school committee dont have the experience or knowledge to handle a multi million dollar budget.
Just one dumb comment as the super is it not her budget as well as the sc.Is she not running the day to day operation.Who else would be versed in the school budget. I thought all supers did their own budgets just like all the town department heads did.
You are correct -- it will be her budget proposal that generally comes out in late December. These preliminary discussions are where the SC has a chance to question initial budget assumptions and establish priorities that they want to see in the budget. It's also where they discuss the estimated local contribution. In this case, they need to cut at least $2.5 million from the budget in order to match the Town's projections for next year.
BUT you need to have some understanding of the contents of the budget and its construction before you can begin changing it. In this case its almost humorous that certain self-appointed "watch dogs" have rolled over and looked positively dumbfounded. They had no idea what they were looking at and couldn't even fake it.
Any idiot can get up at Public Forum and rattle off numbers comparing apples to giraffes -- but being able to ask coherent and relevant budget statements is a different story.
To Anon 1:50
To be clear, Sherry, Jess, Marie and Nancy have decided to delegate the entire budget building process to the one person they say they have no confidence in and have just fired - Dr. Johnson.
How do you reconcile firing someone and then delegating to that same someone (after you fire them) responsibility for establishing District goals, curriculum standards and priorities, budgeting priorities, including technology spends, curriculum spends and staffing reduction decisions?
It seems to this observer that either Dr. Johnson is capable or not. Either she’s competent or not. Either she’s well qualified to lead the District or not.
Maybe Sherry, Jess, Marie and Nancy can explain why they apparently have confidence that Dr Johnson can successfully establish District goals, curriculum standards and priorities, manage the day-to-day operations of our schools and recommend 2011 budgeting priorities, including technology spends, curriculum spends and staffing reduction decisions but somehow was not deserving of a contract extension? I’d like to know and I think taxpayers deserve that answer too.
Thank You
Did all sc participate in this meeting
To Anon 3:13
All School Committee members participated in this budget meeting.
Barbara, Shaun and Andrea demonstrated a better knowledge of the budget and a obvious familiarity with these fiscal matters that far surpassed the know how of the other four but they too have failed to get the budget process moving (see my “Titanic” post).
A key differentiation for me is that Barbara, Shaun and Andrea have and do support Dr. Johnson and her work. I am not therefore surprised at their reliance on and comfort with Dr. Johnson and her judgements and skills. My questions and this issues focuses squarely and I think fairly on the 4 others.
The four appeared to be deer caught in headlights at the budget workshop meeting. The gang of 4 have realized the 2.4 deficit budget is like touching the third rail. They have micromanaged day to day operations, employment issues, muddy hallways, don't support Dr. Johnson ideas even when she is attempting to save money. Directed the super to bring her Phd in to show the seal on her degree from Columbia.
Dr. Johnson should tell them she's busy looking for a district that will appreciate her work and since you fired me and think your so smart, you four take your 2.4 deficit budget and stick it where the sun don't shine.
Why Dr. Johnson continues to help these devious woman is beyond us. It's a guarantee they will blame the whole budget mess all on Dr. Johnson, but wait til she creates it first. Dr. Johnson has not lowered herself to the pig fight level, has given them numerous chances to get out of the litigation mess.
Dr. Johnson file your lawsuit and also list the four personally for defamation of your reputation too.
to the voters of Sandwich I say again....When it comes time to vote in May, everyone MUST remember this unbelievable mess that the current school committee has created and vote accordingly. The foursome will try to blame it on the current superintendent, but we all know the TRUTH!!!!!!
I am concerned about the dynamic on the School Committee like so many others but especially concerned about it's impact on the budget and the process already begun in the municipal discussion. It is time to focus on the budget. Given the dynamic on the SC, it may also be time for them to create neutral helpers in this effort.
I agree with many who know Dr. Johnson, that she will do her job in the same manner she has done in the past budgets, saving the town money by providing effiencies on the school side. At the same time the school system has been moving forward. But given the current negative dynamic perhaps the SC, Dr. Johnson, the school district, and our children would benefit from an adhoc finance committee for the schools to help bring in a more productive budget discussion.
It is time for all of us who care so deeply about not only the future of the children, we as a community are responsible for, but for the future or our town, to begin working in earnest to get through this budget crisis. We need to find a way to work together. We need to find a way for qualified and intelligent people to help without being pulled into "which side are you on."
Here is a suggestion. There are former SC members and financial experts in our community who's help we could draw on. There are parents and community members with outstanding skill sets, who might be comfortable in this practical, analytical, and academic activity. It could provide data and discussion to this critical topic at this critical time.
Perhaps the SC would consider asking for volunteers for a Budget Task Force ASAP to help them and Dr. Johnson with the budget process/discussion and provide more unbiased information to the SC. I think we may need a third party under the wing of the School Committee to help and provide some assurance to the community that this critical issue is being tackled.
It truly is time to figure out how these problems can be solved. We need to move past the agendas and into critical thinking, problem solving, and community responsibility.
What mess are you refering to. The contract issue of the budget issue
Take your pick!
Mrs. Grundman is probably right --- but it is sad we haave to go looking for more volunteers to do the work of the people who ran for the seats claiming THEY could do the work -- but appear to have failed miserably.
At least the Teachers Union, the Community School and the rec leagues got THEIR people on board -- too bad they couldn't do anything -- except fire the Superintendent who had the nervw to question them.
I was referring to the budget crisis, though I recognize the contract issue is very messy too.
Annoyed Parent, Every single day now I speak with more then one (annoyed, fearful, depressed, angry, and frustrated parent.) The same applies to town seniors, part time town residents, full time town residents and everyone in between. As well citizens from another towns ask me what's going on with our schools and the SC. Last night I had a remarkable conversation with a couple who have been 40+ years summer home owners who are gravely concerned about what is going on in Sandwich. It was clear to me that their concern was for the welfare of the schools and the town, not just about their investment.
In my view I think it is time to pursue whatever can be done to help get a more professional energy going. We can talk this thing to death and we can blame our way right into the economic poor house. None of that is going to help preserve the integrity or our schools and town. The schools are the biggest expense in our town. This is common in communities like ours. It is the same in most all small cities which, by virture of our population, we really are. Someone has to fix this. I think there may be volunteers who can help fix this, but who might not even run for SC or have the time to take that on. Besides the time is now. Waiting for a savior to show up in next May's election does us no good at this point in time when we need to create a critical budget plan.
Think of the hundreds of thousands of dollars the schools and town spend on consultants to fix things for us we don't have the staff or the staff hours to fix. We can't hire a consultant to do our budget and we shouldn't. But if we are at a point where our SC literally can't do the job because of personality conflicts and lack of experience and knowledge, maybe we should consider another avenue. The BOS can't do it. The Fin Com can't do it. Why can't a task force be enlisted. I think there may be gifted people in the community who would want to lend their abilities to helping with the budget.
It is just an idea. The process has failed our kids and us all. So perhaps we should develope a way to face the facts and get on with what we need.
Nice ideas Linell, but I think we already know that Marshall is thrilled to have her power and micro managing control back. She can also finally have her way and hire that puppet super she had planned on.
Linehan won't give up her control because her Union Leader husband demands she continue to protect the SEA Union interests, not the children.
Crossman won't give up her power either, she's on the board to protect the Comm. School interests, her longtime friends and of course her C.S. job.
We have always admired elected officials that can say jeeze I messed up and now i need to make things right. The mess they've created has been and will continue to be so detrimental to our town.
Lots of out of towners have asked what the heck is going on with your school committee and schools. Very embarrasing especially with the high taxes we pay for our schools.
Marshall, Linehan, Crossman should seriously consider resigning from their seats, but that would require putting the children's interests ahead of their egos and the community school. Special election would cost money, but the damage they are going to inflict this budget season will be far greater.
Maybe Kangas can see she is in over her head and resign and that way a financial experienced person could take her seat.
The Truth Maker commends the lady selectman for posting perhaps some way to resolve the impact. However, given that the Union led majority school board members do not think they have any financial problems, it would be difficult to find a way to make any progress in there thought process. The actions they have not undertaken, speak volunms as to the present motivation, is more personal then concern for the children and fellow taxpayers here in Sandwich. It is hard to process positive outcomes when those that you are speaking about have no common sense, nor are open to any proposals other then there own usual goal of making sure they find some way to eliminate the one person who has given our School Districts a new life with limited funding.
Until the goals of these four members change, we will continue to see more strife and discource. That will not be good for Sandwich, nor the town itself.
We may need to wait until the next time school members are voted upon to see any changes and if it takes that long to decide the fate of our children, God help us all.
My view is that it is time to move past the blaming and into some action or actions that could result in presenting a budget developement and discussion that makes sense. The times are cricital as we all know. Someone has to start working on this as we all know. I think a third part to break up the war might be a good thing this year.
I ran this idea past folks all weekend. Some were still stuck in the blame game, (which I understand but it is getting us nowhere,) but everyone I spoke with thought it was an idea worth considering. The two posts I have just read I understand, but we need to keep trying to help find a way to achieve what our kids and the town need most, which is leadership in building a budget. Of coures Dr. Johnson can do it alone, but should she, considering she has been fired, and will her sole ownership of it, just provide hours and hours of more discussion at the SC table with little results and more frustration for everyone.
Bob is right, many of the issues of the budget are polticial. They need to be discussed by the SC. They need to be vetted by the SC and the public. A think tank to relate the political to the dollars and cents, in my view, given the lack of experience and the personality conflicts at play, could only help. Clearly any volunteer Financial group would not be at all involved in making or even suggesting policy changes. It would just be a group who would help with the financial problem solving. I think a valuable piece of this group would be a third party neutrality to what we have now in the two camp discussion, which is really wasting time and producing limited results. If we can't get past it, then let's try to get another track going that is more professional and productive.
ANON 2:49
You have no idea what sherry is all about she has never been any ot those things you accuse her of. As it has been said by others rubber stamping vs asking question of the super is not micro managing. they are doing their jobs in asking questions
I said this after Randy suggested a plan to put this SC disgrace in the rear view miror. It is called reconciliation in the purest sense of the word. No apologies, no charm school, no bull. Reconciliation............without it, this will continue.
Reconciliation is a good thought but practically speaking we need an action that we can achieve to help move us forward...something that can be planned for, executed and produce a result.
Mutiny?
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