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January 20, 2006
Bailes Explains His Proposed "Accountability Agreement" on WNOO
WNOO manager and host Charles Sanders asked John about his proposed "Accountability Agreement" on Wednesday. Some community leaders have been concerned with the word "accountability" since it has been misused by a few to avoid adequately supporting schools. John made it very clear on the show that an "Accountability Agreement" is about making our leaders responsible; first and foremost it is an agreement between the county commission and the school board, an agreement with measurable goals.
John believes that an "Accountability Agreement" is really a "Responsibility Agreement."
John said on the radio that "thoughtful people can agree to be responsible. Responsibility means adults can agree and still have differences. Think of this agreement as a two-way street rather than a one-way street. On a two-way street, traffic runs both ways. On a one-way street it runs only one way, causing accidents when anyone tries to go the other way."
"We need a two-way street so that thoughtful people can come together and agree on what our schools should be doing, where they should be going, and how much we should be spending. If we create a two-way street, we'll have more ideas, more buy-in, and greater trust. We will virtually erase personal conflict. It's now time for change at the county commission."
Here are John's first four steps for implementing an "Accountability Agreement":
1. Hold Community Meetings~District level meetings would be held to include input from parents, teachers, students, business people, and community leaders. John has already been holding community meetings in District 8.
2. Agree on Performance Goals~After community input, county and school leaders will then identify and prioritize at least four performance goals for schools. These goals must be measurable and attainable. John believes this step will highlight the agreeability that is attainable by responsible leaders.
3. Set Timeline and Monitoring Approach~Set a period of time for reaching performance goals with an incontrovertible monitoring system (e.g. raising SAT scores by 10 points in four years; lowering car accidents by teen drivers with drivers training programs in three years; etc.). John has worked in school systems where goals like these were set and were met.
4. Provide Funding for Reaching Performance Goals~County commissioners also have a legal and sacred responsibility to go out and aggressively find funding sources to reach these performance goals. John will fight for BEP realignment, pursue other private or public grants, and promote more business growth - all of which are keys to raising funding to the county without raising property taxes.
If you have questions or ideas about John's school funding plan for reducing personal conflict, aligning community action, and bringing responsibility to the county commission, email him HERE. He would like to hear from you.
| By wjbailes | 07:17 AM
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