Monday, February 28, 2000
Parents, teachers team up
Councils shape Ky. schools
BY ANDREA TORTORA
The Cincinnati Enquirer
UNION — Huddled around four tables in the school library, three teachers, two parents and New Haven Elementary Principal Martha Kimble discuss which textbooks students will use and how teachers will fill out report cards.
This is how Kentucky runs its schools. By committee.
“Site-based decision making councils” operate nearly every school in the state as part of Kentucky's education reform. They were implemented to put more power in the hands of parents and teachers.
The job is time consuming and research-intensive. Parents and teachers are elected to one-year terms by their peers. The principal is selected by the council, from a pool of candidates screened by the district's superintendent.
As with any elected body in charge of an institution that serves a diverse constituency, there is sometimes conflict and plenty of candor, especially when it comes to decisions that affect people's children.
That's just the kind of thing council members want, said Bob Sand, a parent member on New Haven's council.
“The school gets stronger with more input from parents,” Mr. Sand said. “Parents are an integral part of this thing, but as the parent rep, I've not had a lot of parents contact us.”
Dozens of parents spend more than a 1,000 hours each month volunteering at the school. A smaller number serve on committees, though the numbers increase when the issues are hot, like classroom configurations or picking new reading programs.
When committee work isn't as exciting, parent interest wanes. Parent member Mary Schmalzl said there aren't enough parents this year to help choose supplemental text book materials.
“It's so much better to have parents feel like they are part of the answer and the solution and not just diagnosing the problem,” Mrs. Schmalzl said. “They see that the answers aren't quite so easy.”
Council members spend at least 10 hours a month on school issues. That number can increase with committee meetings and special events.
Parents unhappy with New Haven's combined third- and fourth-grade classes are learning what it takes to effect change. Supporters of straight fourth-grade classes organized a parent forum to discuss the issue. Mr. Sand and Mrs. Schmalzl attended and presented those parent concerns to the council.
Then the council gathered teacher input on how third- and fourth-grade students would be taught.
The result was a statement, supported by all council members, that will let parents choose what kind of class they want for their child. Mrs. Kimble said she will try to accommodate all requests as best she can within the framework of classes and teachers she has to work with.
“We don't deal with specific kids and parents,” Mrs. Kimble said. “We work with the philosophy of improving overall student achievement.”
Mrs. Kimble doesn't allow the council to take votes. Voting sets up winners and losers, she said. Ruling by consensus is cooperative.
“It's what can you live with. It means you might not be happy with a decision but you aren't opposed to it,” Mrs. Kimble said.
Using consensus also ensures the council takes stock of parental and teacher input gathered in committee meetings. And Mrs. Kimble said the fact that she was hired by the group gives her confidence in their support.
Yet some parents said they often feel shut out of decisions the council makes. Parent Diane Brumback said the council can make parents feel alienated.
For example, the way council sits during meetings often leaves members with their backs toward parents. Mrs. Kimble said the group decided last week on a seating arrangement that ensures all council members will face those in attendance.
Parents said that is a small yet positive step.
“I think the culture and climate of the school must change,” Ms. Brumback said. “They must build bridges for partnerships with families and schools.”
Council members said they plan to work more on educating parents about the site-based decision making process and to find better ways to communicate council proceedings to parents.
Mr. Sand said the group's toughest job is convincing parents to get involved on the various committees.
Art teacher Norita Alexander said the council is a good way to build support among a large group of parents and teachers.
“It works pretty well because there is more of a buy-in,” Ms. Alexander said. “All those people working together, especially with the parents. They feel like they are more a part of the school.”
New Haven, like other schools, has certainly opened its doors to parents. The PTA and parent volunteers help with office tasks, in the classroom and during special events. They raise money for equipment and staff an office space daily.
Mrs. Kimble said the school could not operate without its parent support. She hopes parents trust the council and teachers to do what's best for students.
“Some parents want that real traditional textbook approach,” Mrs. Kimble said. “We are busy doing things that do not require sitting at a desk because we know the brain learns better when the body is active.”
That means New Haven's hallways are often noisy and sometimes messy. Some of the 660 students, like second-grader Kohry Thibodeau, paint murals on the walls that illustrate the life cycle of a tadpole and other river animals.
New Haven is a sprawling school. The building is a conglomeration of additions built onto an original 1931 structure, and three portable classrooms.
Mrs. Kimble and the site-based council like to run things on the “school-within-a-school” model, where groups of classes work as teams to help students better handle life in such a large school.
Most parents like the model, since many parents contributed to the school's design.
“Running the school is not an exact science,” Mrs. Kimble said.
The council knows this. To get more parents involved, it advertises meetings in a school newsletter and invites parents to attend. The group plans to have more parent forums to discuss issues.
Mrs. Alexander said running a school with a site based council raises the education level of everyone involved.
“There's so much that I don't know,” she said. “When we have a committee then we get all these different views and ideas and can look at all of them. Sometimes the parents come up with stuff we didn't think about. It really gives us a much larger view of everything.”
On Thursday New Haven Principal Martha Kimble sent letters home with students stating she will resign at the end of this school year. She is getting married and will be moving to St. Louis.
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