04/01/2015 – Superintendent Search Update

Dr. Joyce Morley (School Board)
Just quickly ….
As we go through this process, one of my major concerns is that … as a district, where we started from and where we are in the two years of being in a five year plan. It concerns me, that as we’ve gone through all of this that we’re not looking in the direction, or how a continuation and making sure and I want to make sure that’s the case.
Looking at … I’ve said it before, if you don’t invite somebody to your house, they’re not going to come to your house. I have major concerns, and you all know this. With what Mr. Thurmond has done and over the last few years. And there’s been little public information stated as to what has been done and the gains that not only Mr. Thurmond but this board has done over the last couple of years. Coming from a deficit, coming from almost losing accreditation, and moving forward that …
We have to be conscientious that when you bring in somebody new, they’re going to bring in some new things too. They’re going to bring in some new people. If you’re in the midst of a 5 year plan, how do you continue that 5 year plan with someone that has another plan and is not maybe on the same page.
As I work with couples, one of the greatest things is first you have to be in the same book. You want to be on the same page, but at least be on the same chapter. So, I think we have to be conscientious of the fact of being in that place.
I think that when we looked at this, sometimes we want new. New doesn’t always mean sure. Sometimes we’re looking for green grass and we may wind up with artificial turf. Sometimes we have to look at the fact that there should have been, from my perspective as an educator for so many years and seeing the failure of education throughout this country, it’s that sometimes we have to leave things where they are. At least approach it and this new superintendent should have been a process at least going into next year and Mr. Thurmond being a consultant over a two year period to make sure we carry out the agenda that is in front of us.
I would be very disappointed to see us going backwards in the way that we went. Cause when you bring somebody else in new, they’re going to want to do their new things as far as staff and administration. Because that’s the way we think as human beings and that’s OK.
I just think that I have heard no one really, and I’ve said to my constituents, publicly actually state the great things that have been done here the last two years. We complain and we say all the negatives. But, I believe there should have been a different approach to this whole superintendency. And, I really believe we should have axed (sic) Mr. Thurmond and let him publicly and in front of this board say, no I don’t want to be here. And then also allow him to be a part of a consultant to this new superintendent for at least for a year or two before this thing is all over with.
So I want to express my concerns. I don’t have children in the school system personally, but I have a hundred thousand I’m responsible for. I have grand children. Am I my brother and sister’s keeper? Yes I am. So we have to begin to not look at right now. I think we got to get out of the right now mentality and look at the tomorrow mentality. If we don’t be careful, and we’ve seen it with this government, DeKalb County government, and all the devastation that keeps taking place, and I live in an area where my housing prices are not going up. As a matter of fact, they are deteriorating. They have not moved. It really bothers me that as educators, and I said to some of the state educators at a colloquial I was at a few weeks ago, we keep changing acronyms, we keep changing names, we put the curriculum on the shelf for a few days. Even when you want good meat, you let it marinate.
But we seem to not want things to marinate. We want a quick fix. We want to move because that seems like the thing to do. We move from 9 to 7 boards because that the way they thought a few years ago. But what’s best at this particular time … we look at the legislature. They’re not looking at what’s best for the particular time and for the children of the future.
Every time I turn on the news and I see an African American boy male …. [keeps going ….]