Superintendent's Letter and My Response (1/28/11)

Horry County Schools
January 28, 2011


Mr. Bobby Chandler
Socastee High School

4900 Socastee Blvd.

Myrtle Beach, SC  29588

Dear Mr. Chandler,

I am writing to address what seems to be a sense of urgency regarding your expectation that I respond to your Public Forum presentation to the School Board on January 24. I listened to and have re-read your presentation, and it is a well-stated opinion about our governance and budgeting process – but except for one question in the fifth paragraph, it is an opinion piece. In fact, your only question is “Are these cost effective?” (i.e., the costs for MAP testing, Early College and Scholars Academy). I think you already know that we have not done a formal return-on-investment (ROI) study that we can provide you for these three expenditures, but that does not mean we have not considered the effectiveness of each as we deliberate on our budget.

In fact, Scholars Academy is at or near the top among Horry County secondary schools in every performance measure used with other schools: SAT, ACT, End-of-Course pass rates, Advanced Placement pass rate, and HSAP. Likewise, Early College is one of the District’s leaders in End-of-Course pass rates and HSAP. Additionally, the fact that both schools have more applicants annually than they can enroll speaks strongly to the perception of students and parents from throughout Horry County about the effectiveness of the Scholars Academy and Early College.

As for MAP testing, it should never be viewed as a “program,”  since it has been used since 2003 as a diagnostic test that aligns with State standards (and therefore our State assessments PASS and HSAP); it provides the most frequent measure of Lexile reading levels of any assessment we use; and it allows students (and their parents) to consider their performance three times a year against a national percentile – the only national comparison students have until they begin taking PSAT (SAT) and Explore (ACT) in late middle school.

I would suggest that each of these has been considered for effectiveness – the same way that we consider the effectiveness of programs such as International Baccalaureate at Socastee and Aynor High Schools; AP courses at all our high schools; and continuing to bring back the best and most experienced teachers to teach in our schools.

I’m not sure what other assurances or responses that I can give you that will be satisfactory. I respect your opinion and the job that you do everyday in the classroom. Together, we will all make this a better school district.

Sincerely,

Cynthia C. Elsberry

Superintendent

 "To invent tomorrow requires vision today!"  - Colin Fox

Cynthia C. Elsberry, Ed.D.

Superintendent, Horry County Schools

P.O. Box 260005

335 Four Mile Road

Conway, SC  29528-6005

 

Dr. Elsberry,

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my concerns.  I, too, appreciate you as a person and respect the job you do everyday as our superintendent.  I have been extremely impressed by your demeanor, your attitude, professionalism, and warm, caring personality.  You have always treated me with the utmost respect.  I also believe that together we can make this a better school district.  In addition, I also respect your right to express your opinion.  I am sure that we agree on many things, especially our desire to do what we think is right and to put students first in all our endeavors.  On other things, at times, we can agree to disagree.  This might be one of those times, perhaps not.  Please let me try, once again, to clear up for you and others what might be a misconception of my concerns.

Although we operate currently under Coherent Governance, "evaluation" of our operations does NOT rest solely with you and/or the district administration.  Although it is your responsibility to make many decisions that impact our district in many ways, the Board of Education has the ultimate responsibility to evaluate results.  In fact, under our current governance system, that is their primary responsibility.  In addition, since the Board of Education is required by law to vote on our budget and related issues which impact the budget, such as allocation schedules, these two responsibilities make the Board ultimately responsible for evaluation of expenditures and their cost-effectiveness.  This should NOT be the sole responsibility of the superintendent and/or the district administration under any form of Policy Governance, ours included.

Of course, you have the right to evaluate any or all of our operations and make your opinion known to the Board and the public, as you have provided in your letter to me.  I respect your right to do so.  What I do not and cannot respect would be your exclusive right to do so.  If this were the case, there would be no room for the public to have any significant input.  Representative government demands that the public have meaningful input through their elected board representatives.  It also demands that the Board have ultimate authority over all operations.  If the Board had to accept your recommendations and your evaluative arguments about operations, then there would be no need for the Board.  You would have absolute control.  Since this is not the case, even under Coherent Governance (although I do believe we come very close), sufficient information must be provided by the district for the public, including me, to make our own evaluation of district operations.  The public can think for themselves. 

I do not teach my students what to think or evaluate difficult questions for them.  I want them to make up their own minds, to study all sides of issues, and to make final determinations on their own.  Evaluation and synthesis are at the highest levels of Bloom's taxonomy and are the essence of higher order thinking skills.  The essential meaning of evaluation is making judgments, of synthesis - creating new avenues and forging new paths.  These cannot occur without analysis, slightly lower on Bloom's taxonomy, but absolutely necessary for evaluation and synthesis.  Analysis cannot occur without the facts.  Remember Sergeant Friday, "Just the facts, Ma’am."  Without the facts, the entire pyramid crumbles.  Any evaluation can be faulty.

Even with the facts, people reach different conclusions.  Evaluations vary.  In a democratic-republic, debate of differences is necessary for the system to work the way it was intended.  A school district is a legally constituted entity. and the public should not be shut out.  Unfortunately, that is what is happening.  Our avenues are slim under Coherent Governance.  Our voices are but a whisper, and our arguments muted.

What I have tried to do in special editorials in the Sun News, e-mails, private conversations, and board addresses is to make the public aware that they should demand sufficient information from the district for their own evaluative purposes.  What is most needed, especially in the dire economic circumstances in which we find ourselves, is anecdotal and statistical information of our most expensive programs, practices, and materials, without district interpretation and evaluation.  Again, we, the public, can do our own thinking.  We can make our own judgments about the relative value of this versus that.

The table is not fully set.  The Board is NOT being given a full range of options.  Even though the district has not yet done a formal return-on-investment (ROI), the most expensive programs, practices, and materials could be put on the table, along with everything else the district has proposed.  The Board could decide to cut all, none, or a portion of any major expenditure, but without the option to do so, many sacred cows will continue to live.  Many might even be "pets" by now, and protected at all costs.  This is not fair.  We should not be afraid to continually put everything we do under the microscope for examination.  Not to do so is inexcusable, especially when public tax dollars are at stake. 

Having said all of this, the main reason I singled MAP out in my last address was because there is a serious discrepancy in the stated budget of over $450,000 and expenditures of a little under $250,000.  Scholars Academy and Early College were mentioned because they are expensive programs and significantly over budget, budgets which, by the way, are not given in the Official Budget document (2010-2011).  All other schools budgets are provided.  Since these are very expensive programs, I only raised the question as to whether or not they are cost effective, a decision which I think still remains with the public and the Board and should not be the district administration's alone.  In other public writing and board addresses I have included International Baccalaureate, as well.  It should be examined just the same as all other major programs.  The only reason I did not do so in my last address is because of its relative inexpensive nature and due to the fact that it is under budget.

I have never said or written anything denigrating Scholars Academy or Early College.   Honors are well-deserved, I'm sure.  I am one of the first to recognize excellence.  Since I raised the question of cost-effectiveness, many have construed my remarks and writings to mean that I am working for an end to these programs.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  I simply want the public to know the total costs of all of our major programs in order for them to have the facts necessary for their own analysis, evaluation, and possible synthesis.  Some might need to be trimmed or possibly eliminated, but, on the other hand, our evaluations might confirm their continued existence.  We might even want to expand and create new options. Of course, our district should provide options for students, if possible.  However, we should be responsible stewards at the same time.  We cannot always do everything we might like to do. 

If we cannot have complete transparency and total disclosure, we ought to try to come as close as possible.  Otherwise, the public will resent our attempts at exclusivity, secrecy, and arrogance.  All district operations should be approached with President Reagan's philosophy of "Trust but verify."

You are right that my January 24th address is mainly an opinion piece.  Any essay or persuasive presentation ought to be.  Opinion pieces should be backed up with evidence.  Some of the most effective have been Jefferson's Declaration of Independence, King's "I Have a Dream" speech, and Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.  Without opinions, strong ones at that, we would be nowhere today as a people.  I make no apologies for anything I write or say, and I do support my opinions with relevant facts.  My address on the 24th was not given to elicit a response from the district administration about whether or not the district thought various programs were cost-effective but to urge the district to give the public the facts for their own evaluative purposes. 

I try to express my ideas clearly, and perhaps I have failed to do so in the past on this issue.  Please forgive my shortcomings, if that is the case.  If the above does not clear up my intentions of late, please question me and challenge anything I have said or written.  I do not seek to be misunderstood.  I will continue to write and speak, however, whether misunderstood or not, because my conscience compels me to do what is right, no matter the consequences.

Sincerely, professionally, and respectfully,

Bobby Chandler