What good is the DPS School Board?

**maxx** · March-06-11, 02:45 PM

They make far too much money for the work they do IMHO. They had to bring in Robert Bob to make the big decisions no one else would make for fear of pissing people off and losing their jobs. School Board positions looks like one of those cozy sinecures that pays well for doing precious little. And shouldn't the number of positions be decreased with the decrease in enrollment.?

**DetroitTeacher** · March-06-11, 03:38 PM

The Board did NOT bring in Bobb. They can't stand him and want him out. I agree, though, they don't do much...

**RickBeall** · March-06-11, 05:35 PM

They handle paychecks. Their own.

**Neilr** · March-06-11, 05:46 PM

Originally Posted by maxx

They make far too much money for the work they do IMHO. They had to bring in Robert Bob to make the big decisions no one else would make for fear of pissing people off and losing their jobs. School Board positions looks like one of those cozy sinecures that pays well for doing precious little. And shouldn't the number of positions be decreased with the decrease in enrollment.?

There's not much I can, or want, to say in defense of the elected members of the Board of Education. However, I want to point out that they do not get paid for their [[and I'm being generous with the word) service other than a small, IIRC $30, stipend per meeting.

The real compensation that being on a board of education [[whether in Detroit or any smaller town, it's all the same) provides is that it's an entry level step into the world of elected politics. Board members can get their names in the paper on a regular basis thereby building their name recognition. Also with the ability to approve contracts and promotions a clever member can build up a base of contributors for future political campaigns.

Alonzo Bates, Kwami Kenyatta, Barbara Rose Collins, and Kay Everett [[who can forget how she sold her vote on a major city contract for 17 pounds of sausage, in addition to lots of cash) all got their start in politics on the the Detroit Board of Education.

**Rocko** · March-06-11, 06:07 PM

Well, umm...the DPS Board is no good.

**Hypestyles** · March-06-11, 06:09 PM

...what's up with the latest controversy, following Bobb's exit, will there be another state appointed EFM, and will it be a Bing staffer who recently resigned..

http://detnews.com/article/20110305/...ne-for-DPS-job

**firstandten** · March-06-11, 07:09 PM

Originally Posted by Neilr

There's not much I can, or want, to say in defense of the elected members of the Board of Education. However, I want to point out that they do not get paid for their [[and I'm being generous with the word) service other than a small, IIRC $30, stipend per meeting.

The real compensation that being on a board of education [[whether in Detroit or any smaller town, it's all the same) provides is that it's an entry level step into the world of elected politics. Board members can get their names in the paper on a regular basis thereby building their name recognition. Also with the ability to approve contracts and promotions a clever member can build up a base of contributors for future political campaigns.

Alonzo Bates, Kwami Kenyatta, Barbara Rose Collins, and Kay Everett [[who can forget how she sold her vote on a major city contract for 17 pounds of sausage, in addition to lots of cash) all got their start in politics on the the Detroit Board of Education.

Excellent post !!

NorthEndere · March-07-11, 04:06 AM

What good is the DPS school board? Maybe the question should be what good is any school board? We purposefully structured our schools, in this nation, so that the community would run their schools seperate from their city government, which at the time this was done, were rife with blatant corruption. One can ask the wisdom in that for today's delivery of education, but I'm not sure if the best question is one that singles out the DPS school board. We also have a tool, that allows for the nullifcation of a school board as far as the administering of its finances are concerned; it's called an EMF. Lest we forget, DPS' school board was deposed by the state in 1999 and administered state and mayor-appointed board until 2005. This isn't the first rodeo for the district. Maybe, another question should be what good is an EMF, too?

I don't have any love for the school board, but it's existence doesn't offend me anymore than any other school board. At the end of the day, the school board isn't the problem [[at least not mostly).

**R8RBOB** · March-07-11, 08:54 AM

Originally Posted by maxx

They make far too much money for the work they do IMHO. They had to bring in Robert Bob to make the big decisions no one else would make for fear of pissing people off and losing their jobs. School Board positions looks like one of those cozy sinecures that pays well for doing precious little. And shouldn't the number of positions be decreased with the decrease in enrollment.?

Is this a real question?

Since it has been created as a thread, let me point a couple of things.
1) the school board members do not collect a salary[[I point you to this article. http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll...344/1003/METRO)
2) the board did not bring in Robert Bobb. Bobb was appointed by then-Governor Jennifer Granholm

I know that we want to dump on the board because they are incompetent but let's get our facts right before we go to flaming them.

**R8RBOB** · March-07-11, 09:06 AM

Originally Posted by Neilr

There's not much I can, or want, to say in defense of the elected members of the Board of Education. However, I want to point out that they do not get paid for their [[and I'm being generous with the word) service other than a small, IIRC $30, stipend per meeting.

The real compensation that being on a board of education [[whether in Detroit or any smaller town, it's all the same) provides is that it's an entry level step into the world of elected politics. Board members can get their names in the paper on a regular basis thereby building their name recognition. Also with the ability to approve contracts and promotions a clever member can build up a base of contributors for future political campaigns.

Alonzo Bates, Kwami Kenyatta, Barbara Rose Collins, and Kay Everett [[who can forget how she sold her vote on a major city contract for 17 pounds of sausage, in addition to lots of cash) all got their start in politics on the the Detroit Board of Education.

You just exposed the reason why people want to get elected to the school board....in the past. In the past, before DPS became a cesspool of corruption, if you were an unknown you wanted to get elected to the school board to build up your name recognition so that you could get elected to a higher office. Now, the board is so poisoned that if anyone from the current board was to get elected as a representative or a senator or even a councilperson I would be shock. Jimmy Womack may be the last for a long time to jump from the board to whatever.

**maxx** · March-07-11, 11:39 AM

Originally Posted by DetroitTeacher

The Board did NOT bring in Bobb. They can't stand him and want him out. I agree, though, they don't do much...

I'm sorry. I was not referring to the Board when I mentioned R. Bob. The "they" was a general one. I should have said the city or some governmental entity.

**Homer** · March-07-11, 01:26 PM

If the Board is a stepping stone to higher office I can see Elena Herrada lining up for the new Council by district in the next few years representing SW Detroit. Anyother future candidates on the Board?

**R8RBOB** · March-07-11, 01:44 PM

Originally Posted by Homer

If the Board is a stepping stone to higher office I can see Elena Herrada lining up for the new Council by district in the next few years representing SW Detroit. Anyother future candidates on the Board?

Goes to show how much I know about Detroit politicians. Until today, I wasn't aware of Ms. Herrada and if this was 2008 and council by district was enacted then yes she would have an excellent chance of getting on the council. However, this is 2011 and the state made the board into a board in name only. Robert Bobb spent the last two years making the board into a non-factor so names like Elena Herrada or Terry Catchings aren't mainstream.

**1KielsonDrive** · March-07-11, 02:01 PM

The important flipside of your question wasn't posted: What good is the DPS emergency manager? You ask the question from one side. For a discussion to be helpful it must be fair.

**SWMAP** · March-07-11, 02:16 PM

When i was a girl in Detroit, the president of the Detroit School Board lived across the street from me on the lower east side. I remember that Mrs. Canty drove herself to her evening meetings in her own neat Ford sedan.

Fast-forward to me attending a luncheon meeting with a member of the School Board in around 1983. The board member had a day-job at the UAW on East Jefferson. She arrived at the meeting [[UAW-related, not Board-related) in a limo with a driver who waited for her. I was astonished that school board members were living so high and had drivers/cars available to them all day as well as for meetings.

The drivers and the cars were wrestled away from them later by some reformers that have periodically come by- but the priviledge remains. Those seats aren't just about being stepping stones to higher elected offices. They are about the ability to bestow patronage and line their own and other people's pockets. But it wasn't always like that. Get rid of the patronage opportunities.

**1KielsonDrive** · March-07-11, 02:24 PM

[QUOTE=SWMAP;228566]When i was a girl in Detroit, the president of the Detroit School Board lived across the street from me on the lower east side. I remember that Mrs. Canty drove herself to her evening meetings in her own neat Ford sedan.

Fast-forward to me attending a luncheon meeting with a member of the School Board in around 1983. The board member had a day-job at the UAW on East Jefferson. She arrived at the meeting [[UAW-related, not Board-related) in a limo with a driver who waited for her. I was astonished that school board members were living so high and had drivers/cars available to them all day as well as for meetings.

The drivers and the cars were wrestled away from them later by some reformers that have periodically come by- but the priviledge remains. Those seats aren't just about being stepping stones to higher elected offices. They are about the ability to bestow patronage and line their own and other people's pockets. But it wasn't always like that. Get rid of the patronage opportunities.[/QUOTE]

For both the board members and the appointed 'Emergency Manager'.

**SWMAP** · March-07-11, 02:27 PM

I think Elena Herrada [[born Ellen Herrada) is so lightweight, a complete opportunist and a little over-wrought. One of the planks of her platform recently is that our current SW Detroit representation in Lansing needs to be tossed because not the right ethnicity.

**preserve** · March-07-11, 05:28 PM

With Barbara Rose and Monica gone, we at least have the School Board for bad publicity and laughs.

**maxx** · March-07-11, 06:18 PM

The EFM is obviously needed to make the decisions the school board and/or the superintendant can't or won't make. Schools have been operating at only half capacity for years and no one appeared to have the cajones to suggest closing some of them. There needs to be a discussion about what is the point of having a school board if they won't do their jobs. The most they seem to do is to preside over meetings where Detroiters get to vent their frustrations. That may provide some therapeutic benefit for a few people, but it is not a good model for behavior.

**R8RBOB** · March-07-11, 06:52 PM

Originally Posted by maxx

The EFM is obviously needed to make the decisions the school board and/or the superintendant can't or won't make. Schools have been operating at only half capacity for years and no one appeared to have the cajones to suggest closing some of them. There needs to be a discussion about what is the point of having a school board if they won't do their jobs. The most they seem to do is to preside over meetings where Detroiters get to vent their frustrations. That may provide some therapeutic benefit for a few people, but it is not a good model for behavior.

For the record, I'm not defending the board but your facts are off. I was a contractor for DPS back in 2005 when William Coleman started the ball rolling with closing schools. He closed in 05, 06 and 07. I'm not sure if Calloway closed any schools but we know Bobb came in and closed plenty.

**trstar** · March-07-11, 06:55 PM

Originally Posted by NorthEnder

What good is the DPS school board? Maybe the question should be what good is any school board? We purposefully structured our schools, in this nation, so that the community would run their schools seperate from their city government, which at the time this was done, were rife with blatant corruption. One can ask the wisdom in that for today's delivery of education, but I'm not sure if the best question is one that singles out the DPS school board. We also have a tool, that allows for the nullifcation of a school board as far as the administering of its finances are concerned; it's called an EMF. Lest we forget, DPS' school board was deposed by the state in 1999 and administered state and mayor-appointed board until 2005. This isn't the first rodeo for the district. Maybe, another question should be what good is an EMF, too?

I don't have any love for the school board, but it's existence doesn't offend me anymore than any other school board. At the end of the day, the school board isn't the problem [[at least not mostly).

Indeed what does an EMF do, except INCREASE the deficit, and still be considered a hero?

I agree that an overhaul is/was needed but the way things are progressing, the EMF will need an EMF.

**maxx** · March-07-11, 08:01 PM

Originally Posted by R8RBOB

For the record, I'm not defending the board but your facts are off. I was a contractor for DPS back in 2005 when William Coleman started the ball rolling with closing schools. He closed in 05, 06 and 07. I'm not sure if Calloway closed any schools but we know Bobb came in and closed plenty.

And Adamany found some corruption in DPS which was probably just the tip of the iceberg.

**firstandten** · March-08-11, 01:47 PM

I would like to see a couple of things happen to the school board because the way it is currently constructed, it doesn't have the best interest of the students at heart.

One I would like to see a ban from people running for elected office for two years after leaving the school board.

That would help from having the Rep Womacks of the world stepping out of the school board right to a State Rep job. I think it can be shown that due to the high profile recognition he received as school board pres and member gave him a leg up for the State Reps job. Once he gets the job then the power of being an incumbent helps keep him in office. Rep Womack was only following a tried and true method of political advancement.

Secondly I would like to see a strong ethics policy put in place for school board members since they have authority to approve millions of dollars of contracts. I believe influence has been bought and sold over the years as a result of it.

These areas have been a distraction and have led to children not being the first priority.

To address another poster schools have been closed but not at the level they should have been
Until Bobb came along. Bobb had these mass closings but he should not have needed to do it if the board didn't kick the can down the road with closing the correct number of schools for a given year.

**R8RBOB** · March-08-11, 02:36 PM

Originally Posted by firstandten

I would like to see a couple of things happen to the school board because the way it is currently constructed, it doesn't have the best interest of the students at heart.

One I would like to see a ban from people running for elected office for two years after leaving the school board.

That would help from having the Rep Womacks of the world stepping out of the school board right to a State Rep job. I think it can be shown that due to the high profile recognition he received as school board pres and member gave him a leg up for the State Reps job. Once he gets the job then the power of being an incumbent helps keep him in office. Rep Womack was only following a tried and true method of political advancement.

Secondly I would like to see a strong ethics policy put in place for school board members since they have authority to approve millions of dollars of contracts. I believe influence has been bought and sold over the years as a result of it.

These areas have been a distraction and have led to children not being the first priority.

To address another poster schools have been closed but not at the level they should have been
Until Bobb came along. Bobb had these mass closings but he should not have needed to do it if the board didn't kick the can down the road with closing the correct number of schools for a given year.

I for one believe in morals. It is something surely lacking in politics [[see Kilpatrick, Kwame; Conyers, Monica; Lattimore, William) but I have to disagree with a ban on DPS board members seeking office. As it has been pointed out, the board does not receive a salary for serving on the board. Yes we know that some board members are opportunists but this is America.

Going forward, I would like a new board, one made up of school administrators or principals. No more elections of ordinary citizens but actually people that have a direct interest in the school system.

**R8RBOB** · March-08-11, 06:16 PM

Cockrel: 60-student classes would be end of DPS
http://www.freep.com/article/20110308/NEWS01/110308024/Cockrel-60-student-classes-would-end-DPS?odyssey=obinsite

Ken Cockrel must be a fan of DetroitYes because we have said that if the state forces Bobb or his successor to enact the plan drawn up by Bobb that would increase the size of students in each classroom to 60 you can start dump the dirt on DPS.