Public Questions
Below are questions I have been asked by the public, along with my responses.
Equal Footing with Dighton
What is your opinion about creating a final agreement with dighton that will equalize the budget or weight the voting power respective to allocation?
If you feel no agreement can be made, what is your strategy to start the process of refunding from the regional system.
The Dighton-Rehoboth School Committee is comprised of 5 members from each town. I think this is the correct ratio of members with the important caveat being that for anything to pass, 7 votes are required, rather than just a simple majority.
It has been my experience that when votes pertaining to the needs of the students go to the committee, typically all 10 votes go unanimously toward the students, or at least 9 of the 10 votes go in favor of the students. Two recent examples come to mind:
Last meeting on the question of whether students with low grades would be allowed to practice sports, the vote was a unanimous yes.
The recent reduced student user fees for sports decision went 9-1 in favor of reduced fees.
Generally, when it comes to votes on putting students first, there is very little discord among the members of the SC. There is not a pressing need on these agenda items to secure another vote that will put the students first, because this is very much already happening. Even more importantly, all three candidates this year are committed to seeing this trend continue. This should be very clear from Katie’s platform. If it is not clear from my platform, then please at least know that my daughter is entering Kindergarten next year, so I am probably the most invested in seeing the students given a quality education.
The issue becomes voting on questions of the budget. Let’s look at the solar panels vote as an example. This was a capital expenditure that probably more appropriately should have gone to the two towns for a vote. However, the solar panel installation instead went into the operating budget (which is voted on by the SC, not the towns) because of concerns about which towns would or would not fund the installation. The SC approved the solar panels by a vote of 7-3. All 5 representatives from Dighton voted yes, plus two representatives from Rehoboth. The remaining 3 representatives from Rehoboth likely voted against this because either 1) they knew it would be more of a financial burden to the Town of Rehoboth, or 2) they felt the taxpayers of Rehoboth should have had the opportunity to vote on this expenditure themselves. If Katie and I are elected, it is much more likely that a vote like this would go 6-4, requiring internal arbitration and a voice for Rehoboth taxpayers. As you can probably glean, solar panels being installed do not have a direct impact on student education and enrichment, so it is appropriate for this large capital expenditure to be voted on by all taxpayers.
As long as there are representatives on the SC from the Town of Rehoboth that are not voting in the best interests of Rehoboth, there will never be enough representation. It isn't a matter of increasing Rehoboth's votes, it is a matter of voting in the representatives who will advocate for the best interests of Rehoboth when it comes to budgetary matters.
When you talk about equalizing the budget, the way our regional agreement is currently interpreted, we utilize the state mandatory assessment methodology to determine what each town must contribute to meet the foundation budget (based on ‘town wealth’), then we go above and beyond this foundation budget amount to contribute about $10M more (based on enrollment).
According to state law, we are required to utilize the state methodology assessment formula to calculate the minimum contribution of each member town to the foundation budget, unless we want to use an alternative assessment methodology. The state anticipated the inherent systemic issues with the mandatory assessment methodology formula and gave regional school district member towns a way out. There are rules about how an alternative assessment methodology structure would work, based on state law and town by-laws, but those are largely procedural in nature. To “equalize” the budget, and pay based on student enrollment across the board, the member towns would both have vote to use an alternative assessment methodology.
As far as de-regionalization goes, this is a town vote, not a School Committee vote. My hope is that Dighton would be open to an alternate assessment over broaching the subject of de-regionalization. I have addressed de-regionalization previously, so please see my responses below and let me know if they do not suffice.
Budget vs. Quality
What are your views on how to balance budget concerns vs maintain quality and standards? There are lots of folks talking about decr the town's assessment to the RSC, but how are they going to also ensure quality and opportunity for our students.
I have never settled for low quality or low standards in any aspect of my life, and if I am elected to School Committee I can assure you that the administration will be held to the utmost of high standards through my attention to detail and concern for a generation of well-educated students.
For example, I have learned through conversations with the public that the solar panels at D-R have been installed facing the wrong direction. If I had been on the School Committee when this project was presented, I would have sought public input, discovered this issue, and pushed back on it. Installing the solar panels correctly would have prevented a huge waste of solar energy and given the school the funds they were promised when presented with this option. Less money would be going to utilities, allowing more to go to student programs.
The absolute best way to balance the budget while maintaining quality and standards is to find the waste in the budget and re-allocate it to programs that benefit the students. I have the skills necessary to analyze the budget and am already hard at work gathering data for an in-depth analysis. I recently submitted a public records request for several budget-related items and should have that data before the end of the month. Once I receive it, I will be well on my way to finding more concrete options by presenting my analyses in a clear and concise format to the public and inviting conversation on areas that can be improved. I don’t even like saying this last sentence, because I am tired of “fluffy” answers and flashy political buzzwords like “invite conversation”, but that is the truth. The best I can do is provide the public with my aptitude for data analysis which will then allow those with different strengths than me to help identify improvements. I am never going to misrepresent myself as having all the answers, but I do have critical strengths that will be an asset in ensuring the line items on the budget are going to student enrichment as much as possible. If you haven’t seen my re-formatted budget post, I would suggest you check that out so you can see exactly how I plan to attack this issue.
Covid
If there was a further outbreak of COVID, partic w/in the schools, how would they respond to that? It's quite vogue to say "get em open" but you cannot be blind to the opposite possibility of a reversal of re-opening if circumstances require.
It is inexcusable at this point to reverse school re-opening unless there is a major change (and this does not mean just a more contagious variant) in the dynamics of this virus causing child mortality to skyrocket. There is no science to support that such a thing is a possibility, and it would be irresponsible of me to respond to this question without scientific support of an imminent catastrophic change in the manifestation of this virus. If numbers start rising, like they did in September, I will still support schools being in-person 5 days a week.
The damage that hybrid and virtual schooling has done is irreversible, and I do not support putting the students through yet another reversal of re-opening. We have learned plenty of valuable mitigation strategies over the past year that can be used to combat Covid, so we are no longer reliant on social isolation. Offering in-person schooling is no less an essential service than shopping for groceries, and grocery stores have managed to stay open throughout the pandemic, so certainly schools can stay open after all the tools we have acquired to keep ourselves safe.
I will continue to support parents having a choice to keep their students fully remote if they are uncomfortable. Choice is one of the basic cornerstones of freedom in this country and I would not support any student being required to return to school if they were uncomfortable doing so.
De-Regionalization Consequences
If the town votes to separate K-8 from the RSC, how do they envision the administration of that new district? How do they intend to ensure Rehoboth students progress to the point they need to by 8th grade so they are ready to join the Dighton kids @ DRRHS?
Please scroll down a little to see my previous response to a question I received about my support of K-8 de-regionalization. As you correctly mention, this would be a town vote, not a School Committee vote. I currently do not know enough about what de-regionalization would entail to speak very intelligently about the requirements of a new administration, but I am a fast learner and have already (almost) mastered the Chapter 70 funding formulas. I am hoping someone can give me a quiz soon to evaluate my knowledge.
I have been inquisitive recently about what de-regionalization would look like. I was under the impression that maybe there would have to be three superintendents, and I learned that is not necessarily the case. So, in response to your question on my vision of the administration, I simply don’t have one right now. I have been spending most of my free time at night and on weekends researching funding formulas, analyzing the D-R budget, reading regulations around MCAS, and trying to get out and talk to people, so I have not gotten to this topic yet and cannot fully appreciate the potential consequences of de-regionalization and the rules around what the administration would be required to look like. I will certainly be adding this to my list of reading material now that it has come up twice.
As for the second part of your question, my focus will always be on how students who fall under my prevue can have the best education possible, with or without de-regionalization. I touched on how I would do that in your first question. I currently do support the use of some type of standardized assessment system to ensure that our students are on par with other districts, states, or countries. I believe MCAS has lost its way, and the focus needs to come off teaching students how to pass this test, and more on just ensuring that the core competencies tested are a natural part of our curriculum. While I believe teachers should be creative and passionate, having no standard to teach to could be incredibly detrimental to students, allowing inconsistency between teachers to become a major issue. I do not believe in the complete elimination of a system of assessment across our state, and the use of such is how I would ensure our K-8 students could read, write, comprehend, and understand science, math, and history just as well as or better than students in any other schools.
Support of In-Person Learning
What is your stance on teachers and students returning to full time in school learning?
How do you plan on dealing with teachers if they refuse to return to school?
Please see my blog posts "The Cost of Success" and "The Learning Gap Widens". I am in favor of teachers and students returning to full-time in-person learning as soon as possible to mitigate the detrimental effects on students. Many school systems across the country and world are already in person full-time and I think we are doing the students of D-R a great disservice by keeping them in a hybrid model. Re-opening schools full-time will help narrow the learning gap between those who can afford to shop for in-person learning and those who cannot. I do support an option for those who choose to keep their children home.
I do not know how much influence the School Committee has over the Teachers Union. I have some family and friends that are front-line workers and private school teachers, and I would like to hear from them how employees are dealt with if they refuse to return to work without a documented medical condition. I would support following the methods used for front-line workers, private school teachers, and daycare employees who refuse to return to work. I am just not exactly sure the specifics on that and will do more research. I do not think public school teachers should be in a different class than the rest of the workforce, which includes my mom and mother-in-law who have been working with the public every day of this pandemic.
Support of De-Regionalization
What side are you on if Rehoboth wants to split Palmer River and Beckwith from the RA? Are you in favor?
I will start by saying that I would not vote on an issue of this weight until I heard arguments presented from both sides to ensure that I was truly representing the voices of the people who elected me.
That being said, based on the numbers I have seen so far, I think I would have to support K-8 de-regionalization, though it would make me sad to split the district that I grew up in. I would not vote in favor of this until I was able to see or perform a complete financial analysis with multiple viable options on the table. Certainly, some efficiencies would be lost and costs increased on both sides if the district were split. On the other hand, it could ease tensions between the neighboring towns if we only had to focus on the school we shared.
At the end of the day, I am looking out for the people of Rehoboth. If it would greatly benefit our taxpayers and I was sure there were no other options that could equally benefit us and our students, I would vote in favor. However, this is not a decision I can make conclusively over a quick conversation and would never attempt to do so without greatly educating myself on the facts.
In-Person Logistics (asked Pre-DESE Announcement)
What's your plan for how to get kids back into the classroom safely?
How would you address the financial issues involved in making the spaces safe for all students, teachers and staff?
The first step is to have the parents who are planning on sending students back when the schools fully re-open to register them immediately so we have a concrete number next month of how many students will be returning. It is almost impossible to formulate a plan without that information, which is critical to compile before we can even speculate as to whether spacing will be an issue.
Next, we need to understand the exact metrics that the Teachers Union is looking to negotiate, which have not been made public knowledge yet. The CDC has cited data that it is in fact safe to re-open schools using the mitigation strategies I list in the question below. What has not been explained in definable terms yet is what the Teachers Union considers safe. I sincerely hope that a clear list of measurable metrics is provided by the Union sooner rather than later.
By the time I would take office (if elected), there is also a very good chance that teachers will have had the opportunity to be vaccinated. K-12 teachers are in Phase 3 of the Massachusetts vaccination roll-out. Phase 2 is expected to last through March, so I am hopeful that teachers will be able to receive the vaccination throughout the month of April. My hope is that once this milestone is achieved, teachers feel safe coming back full-time.
If any parent has concerns for their student’s safety, there should continue to be an option to stay home.
The CDC has indicated 5 key mitigation strategies for re-opening schools which will not be costly to implement.
· Universal and correct use of masks
· Physical distancing
· Handwashing and respiratory etiquette
· Cleaning and maintaining healthy facilities
· Contact tracing in combination with isolation and quarantine, in collaboration with the health department
In addition, Steven Howitt has announced that districts in the 4th Bristol District are scheduled to receive or have already received funding under the COVID-19 Response, Remote Learning and Student Support Grants program. These funds can be used to help with the cost of PPE and hygienic supplies.
The district has already used CARES funding to make any required changes to the HVAC systems. Based on my understanding, the district has exceptional HVAC with single pass exchange in most rooms and does not have circulation running through multiple rooms that shares air between classrooms. I do not believe that funding has been an issue keeping the students out of classrooms, but I would invite anyone to elaborate if it has.