Superintendent’s extension

This summer was consumed by debate over whether or not to extend Superintendent Fowler-Finn’s contract, which was to expire at the end of the current school year (August 2007).

Early on, I had assumed I would vote against extending Dr. Fowler-Finn’s contract. I found his leadership style unilateral and uninspiring; I knew that I likely would not have hired him had I been on that prior School Committee; and I relished the idea of actively seeking out an exciting new leader that more closely shared my vision of public education.

By the end of the process, however, I took the conservative position of voting for a compromised one-year extension. I decided that disrupting the school system so that I could search out a new Superintendent more fitting to my tastes was not necessarily the best thing for the kids of Cambridge. Additionally, there was no guarantee that we would find, or agree upon, a Superintendent who was any better.

Dr. Fowler-Finn got everything he wanted from the previous School Committee when he negotiated his first contract three years ago, including three provisions that greatly limited the School Committee’s ability to represent the public interest effectively.

That contract forbid the School Committee from forming subcommittees for any task other than budget deliberations and contract negotiations, it forbid the Committee from consulting principals and administrators without the Superintendent’s permission, and it required that the district’s goals be negotiated in executive session, without the public’s input. But this time around the School Committee bargained hard; each of these three provisions, all of which I found antithetical to transparent and reasoned public policy making, was successfully deleted from the new contract. We asserted ourselves in reclaiming these crucial legislative rights without giving away anything (i.e. a salary increase) in return.

While the School Committee was very critical of Dr. Fowler-Finn during our negotiations, we were also self-reflective about the changes we wanted to make in our own capacity to guide and shape our schools. The relationship between the School Committee, our Superintendent, and the citizens of Cambridge should be a model for meaningful democratic deliberation. If we all participate more actively, more openly, and more candidly, we will be less dependent on the Superintendent’s expertise alone. Then maybe this summer’s decision will not have been quite as important as we thought.

Subcommittees

Since the School Committee regained our right to have subcommittees through the Superintendent’s new contract, I have been working on designing a new subcommittee structure that will better focus us on broad district-wide governance.

Subcommittees have the potential to transform the way we understand and vet policy proposals, but we must be careful to insure that they do not grow so expansive that they create an undue burden on the administration. I have sent out a memo outlining a proposed subcommittee structure to my colleagues and I am working closely with our Vice-Chair, Fred Fantini, to come up with a model that is agreeable to all members, new and old.

High school principal

Chris Saheed, a former CRLS teacher and academic dean, has been named interim Principal for CRLS. I have visited the high school several times since the start of the school year and teachers and students alike seem thrilled by his leadership. Superintendent Fowler-Finn, who has sole authority to hire principals, has assured us that Mr. Saheed will be considered a lead candidate during this year’s ongoing search. It looks like Mr. Saheed is making this an easy choice for Dr. Fowler-Finn.

WiFi and digital divide

With continued support from City Councillor Henrietta Davis, we have moved forward on forming a Cambridge Public Schools/City of Cambridge joint committee on the digital divide. The committee’s primary goal is to provide wireless ready computers to all ninth graders previously without computers by September 2007.

Henrietta’s WiFi task force has looked into the feasibility of collecting and refurbishing recycled computers from the city, school department, and outside businesses and they are optimistic that we can provide more than enough computers, at little cost to the school department, by the start of next school year. These computers will be able to access the Internet through the city’s coming free public wireless program.

Green buildings

Patty Nolan and I have proposed the following motion on green building in CPS. It was tabled by our colleagues, but we are hopeful that it will still pass. Some members are concerned that it may slow some of our coming capital projects, of which there are many. But the fact that there are many projects on the horizon is precisely why Patty and I think this is an important time to press for comprehensive green building across CPS.

WHEREAS: The public schools have a primary mission of education, and one of the largest challenges that will face coming generations is the shift from a fossil fuel to a renewable and sustainable economy, in support of what will be required of these students, the district resolves to educate and model a vision for a sustainable future and;

WHEREAS: Cambridge as a city has made a commitment to environmental leadership, including adopting a Climate Protection Plan, which commits the city to high performing buildings and sustainability principles, and;

WHEREAS: many sustainability initiatives lead to healthier environments, higher productivity and long term financial benefits, and green building and construction is often cost effective with operating cost savings outweigh initial capital costs, and;

WHEREAS: other Cambridge educational institutions, including Harvard, MIT and Lesley University have all shown leadership in the area of environmental stewardship, energy efficiency and green building;

THEREFORE be it ordered that: all school projects involving construction, maintenance and repair, be required to consider and include environmentally responsible materials, options, and processes;

And be it further ordered that: All School Committee related building and construction and repair projects be performed to high environmental standards and include considerations of natural healthy indoor environments as well as sustainability in design and use of materials;

And be it further ordered that: The energy efficiency of all buildings be assessed and a plan developed to improve the efficiency of operations;

And be it further ordered that: The Superintendent is directed to convene an Environmental Task Force, comprised of staff, community members, School Committee members and students, to establish, consider, oversee, and monitor environmental policies related to the operation of the Cambridge Public Schools. This group would work closely with CPS staff charged with managing any related programs.

GLBT Commission’s Pride Breakfast Award

I was honored to receive, on behalf of the School Committee, an award at the Annual Cambridge Lesbian and Gay Pride Breakfast on June 10, 2006. We received the reward in recognition of our successful efforts to include in the FY ’06-’07 budget increased funding for the coordinator of Project 10 East at CRLS, Cambridge’s gay/straight alliance created to support gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) youth in Cambridge’s schools.