More Tips for School Advocates

Continuing from an earlier thread of suggestions for affected school communities, here are some more tips for school advocates.

1) Listen frequently and as carefully as possible to what the leaders (like Dr. G-J) and decision-makers (the School Board) are saying and writing. This is not as easy and obvious as it sounds. When you are upset, or believe the district is doing something wrong, it's easy to get so emotional about it that your head is filled with your own thoughts and arguments to the exclusion of being able to listen to others. But I think it's absolutely crucial when advocating for a position to understand as much as possible about the philosophies/beliefs/concerns of decision-makers and leaders. On that note:

2) Once you have identified the philosophies, key concerns, approaches of the leaders and decision-makers, use that information to target your message to them. For example, during the last round of closures, we heard that "dispersal" of kids from a closed school to many different schools (as opposed to one or two) was a key concern of several School Board members. Graham Hill parents heard this concern, did their research, and then presented their case successfully, keeping their school open.

3) Assume the best, not the worst, of District staff, School Board members, and other parents in the commmunity. This not only will make people more likely to listen to what you have to say, but it will also help you avoid ulcers, high blood pressure and other side effects of constantly assuming the worst.

Comments

Josh Hayes said…
I can't agree with this more. I roared into some SSD staffers' mailboxes last week with a demand for data, then the next day apologized for my tone, and after some emails saying "don't sweat it! we know everyone's stressing", got my data the next day.

In the deepest sense, we're all on the same side: educating the kids. We can get a lot done if we refuse to demonize each other. I have to believe that, otherwise, how can public schools survive?
12/9/08, 10:46 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tuesday Open Thread

The speaker list is up for the Board meeting tomorrow; not as packed as I thought with just four people on the waitlist. The majority of the speakers are speaking on high school boundaries (with several wanting to talk about Ballard High). There are only three of us speaking about the Green Dot resolution asking the City to not grant the zoning departures that Green Dot has requested.  It's me, long-time watchdog, Chris Jackins, and the head of the Washington State Charter Schools Association, Patrick D'Amelio.  (I knew Mr. D'Amelio when he headed the Alliance for Education and Big Brothers and Big Sisters; he's a stand-up guy.)
Read more

Breaking It Down: Where the District Might Close Schools

Update 2: an absolutely fabulous interactive map made by parent Beth Day (@thebethocracy on Twitter - she covers Board meetings and is fun to read).   end of update    Update 1: Mea culpa, I did indeed get Decatur and Thornton Creek mixed up. Thanks to all for the correction. end of update   I suspect some who read this post will be irate. Why do this? Because the district seems very hellbent on this effort with no oversight skid marks from the Board.    To clearly state - I do not believe that closing 20 schools is a good idea. I think they hit on 20 because they thought it might bring in the most savings. But the jury is still out on the savings because the district has not shown its work nor its data. I suspect closing schools and THEN leasing/renting them is the big plan but that means the district really has to keep the buildings up.   But this district, with its happy talk about "well-resourced schools" is NOT acknowledging the pain and yes, gr...
Read more

Education News Roundup

From the ever-amusing Washington Policy Center : Vouchers are Pell Grants for students under 18.  Vouchers are no different than Pell Grants or GI benefits, except the money goes to the families of students younger than age 18.  Except they are. Pell Grants were created to help needy students and that's not really the goal of the voucher program.  The Pell grant website does have a couple of great studies on why low-income students drop out before finishing their higher ed and what makes a difference.
Read more