Both the N&R lead editorial and columnist Susan Ladd go off on the Republican-led Guilford County Board of Commissioners for its somewhat skeptical endorsement of GCS’ Say Yes to Education initiative.
Ladd lashes out:
As a parent of two students in Guilford County Schools and a Guilford County taxpayer, I was appalled at the treatment county commissioners gave to community leaders who have invested so much time, energy and leadership in this process and to representatives of Say Yes, who have invested more than $1 million in our community to make this program happen.
Commissioner Hank Henning, the chairman of the Board of Commissioners, lashed out at members of the Say Yes committee who attended a work session Monday, saying that the commissioners had been left out of their process and that communication had been poor. Other commissioners echoed that sentiment.
Exactly where have the commissioners been during this process? Can they not hear or read? Greensboro appointed Assistant City Manager Mary Vigue to lead the committee. Deputy County Manager Clarence Grier is listed as a member of the committee, so why hasn’t he been reporting back to the board?
Many of the questions commissioners asked Monday could have been answered by spending an hour on the Guilford Says Yes website or reading through the press kit.
You would think that the commissioners would have taken a greater interest in a program that so greatly can benefit their constituents, as well as one of the county’s key departments, the Guilford County Schools.
The N&R editorial notes “Guilford County Board of Education and the Greensboro and High Point city councils have indicated their support.” Ok the first two don’t count—what else would do the school board do and the City Council will sign off on anything put before it. What the editorial doesn’t mention is the HP council asked hard questions regarding so-called “wrap-around services” for which they could find themselves on the hook before finally approving a resolution —as opposed to a memorandum—on the second try. It’s also worth noting that HP council members also complained about the lack of communication from the school system and Superintendent Mo Green.
Rhino’s Scott Yost covered the commissioners work session and –surprise–he has a slightly different take:
If that all sounds like a great thing at a great price despite those exceptions – well, it may be, but the problem is that the schools and Say Yes were coming to the county and asking for a huge spiritual, if not financial, commitment – and, before that big ask at that meeting, the commissioners had been told virtually nothing about the program.
Say Yes had obviously been talking to the business community – they’d raised most of the money needed at this point – but no one had said word one to the vast majority of county commissioners. When they walked into the room, they were hearing a presentation on the massive and community-changing program for the very first time.
And as soon as the advocates for the program stopped talking and the commissioners started, it became crystal clear the commissioners had all sorts of questions – not necessarily problems with the program, just questions about it.
….After the meeting, one commissioner said this whole situation was typical of the commissioners discussion with the school system: He said school officials rarely communicate well with the commissioners until they need something and then they come ask for what they need at the last minute.
Yost reports Commissioner Carlvena Foster—who had previously served on the school board—said “she’d had conversations with school officials about the Say Yes program, but she added that she seemed to be the only commissioner who had.” Seems to me she’d be the perfect point person to get her fellow commissioners on board.
I’m all for reducing college costs, but when people —especially the N&R—say something’s too good to be true and that anyone who asks questions is an idiot—then it probably is to good to be true.
