I suppose this is my announcement that I am running for office.
Let me say straight off, this isn't a big office, or anything nationally prominent. I'm running for my local school board. It's a non-partisan position.
Like I said, this isn't a major office. But it does matter.
Follow me.
It's not that I'm particularly unhappy with our current school board. They're nice enough people.
But I've been a political creature for many years. And if there's one thing that Daily Kos is about, it's about getting involved in whatever ways are possible.
I have two kids in elementary school, and another who will be there in a couple of years. Locally, the school board doesn't actually have a great deal of power. Our schools have what are called "site based decision making" councils. These usually consist of three teachers and two parents who vote on things form hiring to school policy.
Nevertheless the School Board does have decision-making authority. And this is a small step toward greater involvement in that process, as far as I am concerned.
My qualifications? Aside from having children in school, and being a politically active creature, I have taught kindergarden, 3rd, 5th, 7th, and 11th grade. I've substitute taught at the other grades.
I am currently a college professor deeply involved in teacher training. Each year I work with a couple of dozen already-certified teachers to bring them professional development in social studies. Half the majors in my department will go on to be social studies teachers, and I work closely with most of them.
There are some things that can be accomplished.
Here are a few:
- Figuring out how to do more with less. The fact is that budgets are tight, and aren't going to get any better for a few years. The School Board can help here.
- Fiscal reality demands that we seek alternate forms of funding. Part of my job involved looking for and assisting people with grant-writing. I can bring those skills to the school board in order to help seek grant funds to pursue educational projects.
- Advocating on behalf of the schools. As a School Board member, I would work to advocate for better state and local policies that put more resources in the hands of teachers.
- Dealing with the realities of testing. Schools, teachers, and students live and die by the standardized test. This is a shame, since these tests don't actually test knowledge, they test students' abilities to take tests, and teachers' abilities to teach students to take tests. This has to change.
So, no money-bombs here, no ActBlue. Just a parent taking the first step toward greater involvement in the process. I'm running for the School Board.