Elections: Open Thread
Am I surprised by the outcome of the SB races? Not really. I had thought that the incumbents' races might actually be worse losses than they were. I'm amazed that many people voted for Harium's opponent.
I am sad that the Simple Majority didn't pass. What it means, to me, is that we have to get the Legislature to do its job so that the levies are not life or death for our district. It's just too much of a dark cloud to live under.
We now are facing a whole line-up of new faces in our district in senior management, both elected and hired. Now is the time for compromise and consensus and clarity in vision as we move forward.
P.S. By the way, no matter what the person's background is professionally, nothing is like sitting on the Board. I've talked to enough Board members and that's what they all say. There is a learning curve to everything. I'd say Sherry is the one to be in the best place to hit the ground running as her background points to knowing this district better than the other 3 newly-elected candidates. Like the superintendent, every new Board member needs a honeymoon period.
I am sad that the Simple Majority didn't pass. What it means, to me, is that we have to get the Legislature to do its job so that the levies are not life or death for our district. It's just too much of a dark cloud to live under.
We now are facing a whole line-up of new faces in our district in senior management, both elected and hired. Now is the time for compromise and consensus and clarity in vision as we move forward.
P.S. By the way, no matter what the person's background is professionally, nothing is like sitting on the Board. I've talked to enough Board members and that's what they all say. There is a learning curve to everything. I'd say Sherry is the one to be in the best place to hit the ground running as her background points to knowing this district better than the other 3 newly-elected candidates. Like the superintendent, every new Board member needs a honeymoon period.
Comments
I am sad too...that the simple majority did not pass. That's a bummer, and I didn't expect this outcome. I though it was in the bag as everyone I talked with supported it.
Having listened to Sherry in a couple of forums, I am confident that she has the intelligence and financial background to help the Board and the District.
The election overall was really sad, from the passage of the latest Eyman nonsense to the loss of Simple Majority. I hope that these results had more to do with low turnout that a sense that Washington voters will not pay more for schools.
As far as Simple Majority being "in the bag" - let's all make sure we don't get similarly overconfident about the critical Presidential and Gubernatorial races next year. We have a lot of work to do.
Steven
This is a new day!!!
I would consider the source about the superintendent's job performance. She seems to be willing to hold her staff accountable -- something that hasn't happened for a long time. Her best bet is to purge that district. There is a lot of dead wood that will definitely drag her down. They sunk the last superintendent and a school board.
Director Bass, at six years, is the longest serving Board member. Come January, the next longest serving member will have only two years' experience.
We have a new Superintendent, a new COO, and a nearly new CAO.
So when they come up with an idea they are going to hear people tell them - a lot - that the idea was already tried and found wanting. Or that the idea violates an obscure rule they weren't aware of. Or that the idea won't work for some other inobvious reason that only someone with experience knows about.
Not having that institutional memory among the decision-makers creates all kinds of wasted time and delays. More than that, it is frustrating for everyone and erodes confidence in the leadership.
I can only hope that each of these people finds someone who has been around a while and makes a practice of asking about the history of issues before proposing any solutions.
Dr Maria - trust but verify!