The New Direction
The School Board yesterday unveiled their "New Direction" plan.
Hell, I'm just happy they agreed to move in a direction.
All kidding aside, it sounds like this is a good first step toward helping children focus on graduation, goals, and a better future than many are achieving now.
The board unveiled the proposed "New Direction" with a show of unanimity yesterday and a vow to get back to basics after almost a year of political warfare with Mayor L. Douglas Wilder.
The pledge of a personal education plan for each student is the centerpiece of a conceptual framework for raising student achievement, broadening choices for study and career paths, expanding sports and other out-of-school activities, and involving the public in reshaping education in Richmond.
There is much to be done before any of this gets off the drawing board, including public forums, funding, and operational details.
Board members said they are looking for support from civic organizations and Richmond's business community, including 26 leaders who called this year for a return to appointed school boards instead of elected boards.
They will have support for this goal here, too believe it or not. Hopefully there is new direction in other areas as well and then we might actually have some momentum!
But getting the school administration to enact it and run it effectively is the first set of hurdles even Edwin Moses would have trouble clearing. That will take some close scrutiny to ensure the plan gets off the ground and past the talking about it stages.
This program's goal is a worthy finish line to shoot for (and something the schools have not been focused on much in some time), and sometimes having, setting, starting, and moving toward goals is good enough.
~
Hell, I'm just happy they agreed to move in a direction.
All kidding aside, it sounds like this is a good first step toward helping children focus on graduation, goals, and a better future than many are achieving now.
The board unveiled the proposed "New Direction" with a show of unanimity yesterday and a vow to get back to basics after almost a year of political warfare with Mayor L. Douglas Wilder.
The pledge of a personal education plan for each student is the centerpiece of a conceptual framework for raising student achievement, broadening choices for study and career paths, expanding sports and other out-of-school activities, and involving the public in reshaping education in Richmond.
There is much to be done before any of this gets off the drawing board, including public forums, funding, and operational details.
Board members said they are looking for support from civic organizations and Richmond's business community, including 26 leaders who called this year for a return to appointed school boards instead of elected boards.
They will have support for this goal here, too believe it or not. Hopefully there is new direction in other areas as well and then we might actually have some momentum!
But getting the school administration to enact it and run it effectively is the first set of hurdles even Edwin Moses would have trouble clearing. That will take some close scrutiny to ensure the plan gets off the ground and past the talking about it stages.
This program's goal is a worthy finish line to shoot for (and something the schools have not been focused on much in some time), and sometimes having, setting, starting, and moving toward goals is good enough.
~
Labels: schools
posted by Jon Baliles | 7:26 AM
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