It may surprise many of you to know that as superintendent, I make very few decisions on a day to day basis. Understandably, the decisions that are made from my office are oftentimes far reaching and have wide ranging implications. For those reasons, I am fortunate to have the gift of time when reaching those decisions. With this time, I am able to carefully consider all the options, ask for input and advice from others, and gather more data and information to use in the decision making process.
The administrators in the district along with the faculty and staff are used to asking a question and then me saying something like, 'let me think about that'. I believe that rushed decisions can often turn out to be the wrong decision. The bigger the decision, more time is usually necessary to ensure the right decision is made. This same principle holds true for the Board of Directors. It is a rare occurrence when issues (other than items of routine business) come to the Board with an expectation that a decision be made right then at the table. Many times, these issues are discussed and debated for months before the vote is finally cast. When pressed for an immediate decision, I will often say, 'I can give you an answer right now, but you are probably not going to like what I decide'. That's not to say that you won't like my ultimate decision, but I will have had the opportunity to carefully think through the implications!
For those reasons, it would be wise for our state policymakers to use the gift of time themselves, and remember that we need this gift of time in order to ensure that the decisions made in our local districts are properly vetted with input from multiple perspectives. Let me give you an example where local school districts are being rushed to make decisions they may not otherwise make.
The recent (rushed) decision by the Department of Education to change the way that early start waivers are granted in regard to each districts academic calendar is problematic on multiple fronts. It is the middle of December, and we just learned that this is changing! If school districts haven't already made decisions on the start of the 2015-2016 school year, then they are most likely already working on their calendar. Just to be clear, the Hudson Board of Directors has not seen any drafts of our academic calendar for the 2015-2016 school year, but we have already started those discussions. Over a two week period, I asked for input from our faculty, staff, and administrators for the 2015-2016 school year. Using that input, I crafted 4 different calendar scenarios for the 2015-2016 school year. All will require an early start waiver, yet with the announcement that came on December 12 will prove to be an exercise in futility and an incredible waste of time. Apparently that input from stakeholders and the work already put in doesn't seem to matter. Normally, those draft calendars would be presented to the Board for input and discussion in January. After receiving direction and input, a public hearing would be set for February where final action would be taken. All of that will be on hold until at least January when additional guidance comes out from the Department that identifies what constitutes a 'significant negative educational impact'.
Even though this will result in a loss of precious time, we are probably not as frustrated as some. Think about those school districts who have completed the process! Those who have already adopted calendars for the 2015-2016 school year will now have to start over completely from scratch! Talk about an incredible time waster!
If it is necessary to re-examine how early start waivers are granted, why not delay this until the 2016-2017 school year? Not only would this honor the time that local districts have already invested in calendar development for the 2015-2016 school year, it would also allow the Department of Education to use the gift of time and gather input from local school districts on how best to grant these waivers. Usually when a new administrative rule is proposed, local schools are given the opportunity to provide input into that rule making process. Remember what I opined above about the importance of taking time to make decisions, thus ensuring the decision that is made is properly vetted with input from various stakeholders?
To me, this most certainly seems like a rushed decision.
The administrators in the district along with the faculty and staff are used to asking a question and then me saying something like, 'let me think about that'. I believe that rushed decisions can often turn out to be the wrong decision. The bigger the decision, more time is usually necessary to ensure the right decision is made. This same principle holds true for the Board of Directors. It is a rare occurrence when issues (other than items of routine business) come to the Board with an expectation that a decision be made right then at the table. Many times, these issues are discussed and debated for months before the vote is finally cast. When pressed for an immediate decision, I will often say, 'I can give you an answer right now, but you are probably not going to like what I decide'. That's not to say that you won't like my ultimate decision, but I will have had the opportunity to carefully think through the implications!
For those reasons, it would be wise for our state policymakers to use the gift of time themselves, and remember that we need this gift of time in order to ensure that the decisions made in our local districts are properly vetted with input from multiple perspectives. Let me give you an example where local school districts are being rushed to make decisions they may not otherwise make.
The recent (rushed) decision by the Department of Education to change the way that early start waivers are granted in regard to each districts academic calendar is problematic on multiple fronts. It is the middle of December, and we just learned that this is changing! If school districts haven't already made decisions on the start of the 2015-2016 school year, then they are most likely already working on their calendar. Just to be clear, the Hudson Board of Directors has not seen any drafts of our academic calendar for the 2015-2016 school year, but we have already started those discussions. Over a two week period, I asked for input from our faculty, staff, and administrators for the 2015-2016 school year. Using that input, I crafted 4 different calendar scenarios for the 2015-2016 school year. All will require an early start waiver, yet with the announcement that came on December 12 will prove to be an exercise in futility and an incredible waste of time. Apparently that input from stakeholders and the work already put in doesn't seem to matter. Normally, those draft calendars would be presented to the Board for input and discussion in January. After receiving direction and input, a public hearing would be set for February where final action would be taken. All of that will be on hold until at least January when additional guidance comes out from the Department that identifies what constitutes a 'significant negative educational impact'.
Even though this will result in a loss of precious time, we are probably not as frustrated as some. Think about those school districts who have completed the process! Those who have already adopted calendars for the 2015-2016 school year will now have to start over completely from scratch! Talk about an incredible time waster!
If it is necessary to re-examine how early start waivers are granted, why not delay this until the 2016-2017 school year? Not only would this honor the time that local districts have already invested in calendar development for the 2015-2016 school year, it would also allow the Department of Education to use the gift of time and gather input from local school districts on how best to grant these waivers. Usually when a new administrative rule is proposed, local schools are given the opportunity to provide input into that rule making process. Remember what I opined above about the importance of taking time to make decisions, thus ensuring the decision that is made is properly vetted with input from various stakeholders?
To me, this most certainly seems like a rushed decision.
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