I meet with TAP

Yesterday, I had the privilege of meeting with representatives of TAP (Transforming Action through Power). They have invited all candidates for the South Bend School Board to meet with them, and have sponsored a forum at Little Flower Catholic Church for the at-large candidates at 7:00 PM on Wednesday, Sept. 17.

This meeting was very helpful for me. TAP is highly focused on issues about improving educational opportunity, addressing poverty housing issues, mitigating youth violence and preserving the dignity and rights of our immigrant community members. As my wife Paddy commented when I showed her the invitation: "I can see why you like these guys".

There were two elements I was not expecting.

The first had to do with a situation where the SBSC mandated daily school schedule prevents (in practical terms) the ability to achieve the objectives of the High School magnet curriculum AND satisfy state required course completion. They pointed in particular to Adams - which has a pretty high-powered college prep./college credit magnet program. Apparently, it is the case that you can't physically satisfy the State requirements AND fulfill the magnet program goals. I was told neighboring districts operate similar programs without this problem

I found it a bit disheartening that these folks had to present this problem to a potential School Board member. Seems like this problem should have already been solved.

The other element that became clear as I listened to their questions, was how left out of the process they felt. Question after question had to do with "Would you welcome community involvement in (fill in the blank)?" At some point I felt compelled to ask, "Is there an opposing view?"

There isn't, really, I suspect - yet the current Board has made citizen input seem unwelcome. At least that's TAP's view.

If people this reasonable and dedicated feel this way, they can't be too wrong. I look forward to discussions with more groups and individuals. It seems clear we must change the way we do things.