Whew

Well, I'm glad that's over.

Running background checks on the three finalists for the FCPS Superintendent's job has sucked most of the oxygen out of the past week's work load. But I still was able to begin a new summer course and sit in on the Prichard Committee's spring meeting and...well, that was about it. Despite the fact that I was already pretty familiar with the candidates, I still think it's a good idea to take nothing for granted and see what's in the record. After all one does not know what one may find... until one looks.

Quick Links:
The Book on Lu Young
The Book on Elaine Farris
The Book on Tom Shelton

But in the meantime, I've fallen behind on other concerns.

• Complaints (with supporting documents) KSN&C has received on the FCPS Transportation Department has convinced me that a full-scale internal investigation of departmental processes is probably warranted. Perhaps that should be one of the first pieces of business the new Fayette super should turn their attention to.
• Students at Hancock County High School are crying foul after an explicitly fundamentalist Christian, anti-abortion, abstinence-only assembly was held in May, where representatives of CareNet Owensboro "shared the love of Christ" with students.
• And where is FayetteABC in the hunt for a new superintendent? We've heard from Erik and Cheryl Myrup, but haven't had the chance to respond, other than to post a comment from Erik. Let's talk about that one now. 

Yesterday, Fayette ABC posted the following statement regarding their stance on the search.

FayetteABC Statement on the FCPS

Superintendent Search (June 6, 2011)

FayetteABC now speaks for more than 375 Fayette County residents in at least 14 schools who are concerned about the effects of standardized testing. However, we do not feel that we have the right to speak for individual signers in terms of specific superintendent choices. FayetteABC founding members will be attending daily parent focus groups as well as the superintendent open forums, and have submitted specific questions about standardized testing to these venues. Additionally, we will be posting relevant information regarding candidate responses on our website each night. We encourage anyone who shares our concerns to consult our website and consider these reports along with other available sources of information when forming opinions about the best superintendent for our district.

Please keep in mind that notwithstanding the many community groups that will be meeting with the three candidates, the final decision will ultimately be made by the Fayette County Board of Education. In this regard, we would especially encourage you to write directly to your school board member sharing concerns and experiences related to standardized testing practices, as well as any additional matters that you feel are important. While none of the current candidates is necessarily a reformer in terms of standardized testing, some may be more likely than others to engage educators, parents, and the broader community in ongoing and open discussions about standardized testing and other important issues. In this regard, it is crucial to consider candidates’ leadership styles alongside the test-related practices in their current districts.

Contact information for individual board members is available on the FCPS website at http://www.fcps.net/administration/board-of-education/members. Additionally, the following e-mail address can be used to write directly to all five board members at once: superinput@fayette.kyschools.us.

We encourage everyone to attend the community open forums. Most importantly, we urge you to communicate directly with board members about your preferences and concerns.

FayetteABC was the topic of some informal conversation at Prichard this past weekend, too. The folks I talked to seem to believe the group is sincere, and has a point. The challenge is seen as the need for FCPS to strike the right balance.