New school board member can be a game changer
Choice could give underserved students, district a deserved boost
district’s superintendent and approving the district budget. Let’s not forget that the annual operating budget for Albuquerque Public Schools is approximately $1.3 billion. Yes, billion, with a “B.” That’s equal to or more than the total revenues of most of Albuquerque’s largest private companies. Think of the scrutiny that those companies go through to hire high-ranking staff; it is with that same lens and focus that we, as a community, should evaluate the applicants for the vacant school board position.
Now, as far as the second core responsibility goes, it would do the new school board member well to review the district’s Academic Master Plan, which highlights Superintendent Raquel Reedy’s Top 5 Priorities: Whole Child, College & Career Readiness, Early Learning, Attendance and Community & Parent Engagement. Indeed, these are all worthy priorities, but it is incumbent of the board to ensure that superintendent and staff establish clear metrics for each of these priorities and that the board is regularly updated on the progress toward each metric.
The selected applicant will serve the remainder of the term vacated by Analee Maestas, which ends in 2019. The new board member will have a little more than 12 months to serve the students of the district, and, hopefully, serve as a guiding light of reason on the floundering board.
The bottom line is that the children of District 1 and their families deserve more. They deserve more than a board member that is embroiled in allegations of fraud, more than a board that proposes cuts to middle school sports, more than failing schools. We must pull together as a community to ensure the needs of our students and families are met. This includes reading the candidate bios and applications on the Albuquerque Public Schools website, reading any published news about the candidate forum, and emailing boarded@aps.org to make our voices heard. Each one us is responsible. It’s time to take action.