New Year, Same Problems

From the MLWGS Board Room to City Hall to the Virginia Legislature, 2009 is shaping up to be a difficult year.

MLWGS – Minimal Progress From Diversity Consultant and Director’s Search.

Yesterday, the Regional Board held its first meeting of the New Year. Board Chairman Ivan Mattox led his colleagues in discussion on a whole host of issues, but the board carefully skirted any in-depth discussion of the school’s most two controversial issues, the director’s search and the diversity study.

While there was a cursory announcement about the status of the MLWGS diversity study, it was only the first such update since September. As we all know, a $70,000 contract was awarded last year to four U.Va education professors.

In the coming months, Doctors Brighton, Callahan, Davis and Moon are slated to deliver their high-priced advice to the Regional Board. But as of now, these diversity consultants know practically nothing about our school’s admission’s process.

The professors failed to attend even one of this fall’s thirty middle school recruiting events. Mr. Charles’s advice on this issue is ten times more valuable than any diversity consultant – and his suggestions are free.

As well as being tight-lipped about the diversity study, MLWGS leadership have dragged with the director’s search. Until yesterday, very few details were shared about the “hunt for Mr. Hunt’s replacement.” Even the information given at Thursday’s meeting was ambiguous. We do know now that approximately thirty candidates from “Virginia and across the country” have applied for the position, but no specifics were available.

It would be interesting to know the names of local candidates, and possibly, whether any current MLWGS faculty or board members have applied. Without substantial community involvement, consequences of the director’s search may be disastrous.

Locally – New Richmond Mayor and School Board Bring Change to City, But Is It Too Late?

Last Saturday, new Richmond Mayor Dwight C. Jones delivered his inaugural address to an overflowing, exuberant audience.

From Jones’ remarks, it looks like the next four years could be a time of revitalization and repair for our city. One promising aspect is the new mayor’s pledge to work closely with Richmond’s practically brand-new school board.

In November, five new members were elected to the city’s school board. Essentially this was a mandate from voters for change and overhaul in our school system. Hopefully these new board members will make good on their electoral promises.

This Monday, the MLWGS baseball team met for a pre-season planning session. The team practices on a dilapidated city-owned field adjacent to Richmond’s Clark Springs Elementary School. On Monday, the team voted to play this season’s “home games” at away locations, since the quality of the field is so poor.

Facilities are just one small part of any school system. But they are a critically important tool in keeping students, parents and teachers energized and working hard. Let’s hope some simple things like cleaning up the Clark Springs ball field are seriously considered when the Richmond School Board gets to work.

Statewide – Budget Crisis and Partisan Legislature Don’t Bode Well for Our Commonwealth.

More than a hundred basketball fans donned their Green Machine t-shirts and packed into the gym on Wednesday night to witness a blowout 63-33 MLWGS victory. However, one regular fan was missing from the crowd.

Governor Kaine was not watching the Maggie Walker boys battle Appomattox on the basketball court. Instead, he was delivering his annual State of the Commonwealth address. Kaine’s speech was well-crafted and expertly delivered, but the Governor’s oratory skills were not enough to hide the stark truth that Virginia is facing a full-blown budget crisis.

At the moment, the state is looking at some huge cuts in education funding. As Kaine so truthfully admitted, “it’s never easy to make cuts to schools.” Unfortunately, MLWGS is at risk of being hit doubly hard.

The best possible scenario would be an $80,000 shortfall. Yet this figure was developed without even calculating the possible reduction in funds from our home divisions.

Alas, times are tough. But, as Gandhi once said, “the future depends on what we do in the present.” Unless the MLWGS community takes direct action today to deal with these challenges, we may as well just reprint this very same editorial in the first Jabberwock of 2010.