Remembrance of Things Past

Laura Berthiaume and Phil Kauffman as newly elected Board of Education members -

From December 4, 2008 meeting minutes


Laura Berthiaume:

...To the Parents Coalition as a whole, I am sure I will catch some grief from you, maybe justified, maybe not. That’s OK, I can take it. I just want to let you know that ears do prick up when the watch dog barks. So here’s to you. Bark away…

Phil Kauffman

…We must also address the taxpayers in our county. We are facing a fiscal situation unparalleled in MCPS history. Now, more than ever, our citizens need to be assured, with greater certainty, that the dollars provided to MCPS are effectively and efficiently spent. If we expect the public, especially those without children in our schools, to continue to support public education, we must make clear what we are doing and why, for whom, at what cost, and with what results. People want to know and have a right to know how well their tax dollars are spent. If we do not address that issue more effectively, citizens will continue to say that the school system does not have interest in accountability, which is truly ironic, as MCPS is much more accountable for results than other government agencies.

Even as MCPS prides itself on continuous improvement, I hope that the Board of Education will consider new approaches to improve its oversight responsibilities. We need to provide improved access to community members if we are to learn about what is working and what needs improvement in our schools. We need to seek out a wider range of views when we evaluate programs and policies. While many school systems justifiably look to Montgomery County as a leader, we do not have all the answers. We can and we should look elsewhere to learn from other systems’ successful practices…