What does July 1st mean for EUSD?

Today, July 1st, 2009, will hopefully mark a passage into a new era at EUSD, as Lean King fades into the rear-view mirror of history, and our hopes remain high that Dr. Tim Baird will bring a genuinely fresh set of eyes to the institution. Still, we remain guarded in our optimism since it has been the board of trustees that has been primarily culpable, allowing and abetting Mr. King in his divisive course. Perhaps, if Dr. Baird puts forth a positive and sincere effort, the board will fall into step with him, reversing course as they so quickly seemed to do after the departure of Dr. DeVore. While none of us (bloggers) is particularly partisan, and we have no affiliation with the board's list of “usual suspects” (ie – we aren't TIP parents), we feel it important to mention that this fault lies with the longstanding members of the school board, and not, as yet, with the board member who is new to the situation, Maureen Muir. To date she seems to be exhibiting a strong streak of independence, which is, in itself, a very hopeful sign. Her unaccompanied appearances out-and-about at the schools has not gone unnoticed, her presence at such events as EEF meetings, and her willingness to speak up against the normally lock-step majority in board meetings on issues like academic consultant rates, are all laudable and refreshing. It seems, to those of us who've been around awhile, that there was a time when Mrs. Skiljan and Mr. Parker were of a similar nature: independent in their thoughts and comments. With any luck and the influence of a new superintendent, perhaps they will rekindle or dust off those qualities within themselves. For Mrs. Strich and particularly Mrs. Regan, for differing reasons, there seems to be no cause for optimism in this area. That topic will lend itself to a separate blog entry, forthcoming.

For today, let's welcome Dr. Baird with genuine goodwill, and give him the benefit of the doubt: Perhaps he is his own person, makes his own assessments of situations, of people, of right and wrong, and will come to see clearly the very great task that lies before him. He has waded into the middle of the muck that has been carefully stirred and fermented by his predecessor over these last few years, and he will need the support and help of all of us if he is to steer the district toward a restoration of its former “self”.

On a somewhat tangential note, one of us, a teacher in the district, found last week that this blog's website has evidently been blocked by the district and can no longer be accessed from school campuses, with the administration using its Internet filter to accomplish this. Apparently Mr. King wanted to get off one parting shot before his tenure came to a close, though it was too little, too late, since teaching staff has been advised that campuses are closed for the summer and office staff seem to be gone as well. Still, this is a quintessential example of the Lean King method of engaging dissent: quash, derail, and stifle, using bully tactics and his position of control to do so. The Internet filter, supposedly in place to protect students from pornography and hate-group websites, seems to be quickly and easily co-opted for use in censoring open discussion that Mr. King and/or the board find unpalatable. It is regrettable that they would choose to use technology, which can so easily foster discussion and open exchange of ideas, as a means of suppressing those things, and bears a sad similarity to larger world events (Lean Ahmadinejad?). They encourage us as educators to use it in a way that promotes collaboration, but we must point out to the many EUSD employees who are following this blog and have sent email and comments, be aware that the administration evidently does not have qualms about using the technology police to shape the information you see while at school. Sad. Perhaps the new guy will reconsider.

What's wrong with EUSD

Dear blog reader,

In the interest of brevity we’ll get right to the point, though this first post will likely be longer than it should be, since we're talking about the troubles of the Encinitas Union School District. There are many of us in Encinitas and South Carlsbad with deep connections to the Encinitas Union School District. Some of us are parents, some are teachers, some are classified employees, and some are just concerned community members who once had students at EUSD. We have in common a deep concern about the current state and direction of the district. The tenure of Lean King, his tyrannical and heavy-handed tactics and his general divisiveness, have had a terribly and profoundly corrosive effect on almost every aspect of this school district that was once a collegial and community-friendly place. Still, while Lean King has been the primary agent of this negative change, we also lay blame at the feet of the board of trustees who have remained blissfully ignorant (possibly purposefully ignorant) as they’ve rubber-stamped the superintendent’s actions since his arrival. They have presided over his systematic dismantling of the goodwill and camaraderie which had been painstakingly built up by Dr. Doug Devore, the prior superintendent. During his tenure, Dr. Devore was definitely a “uniter not a divider” and it’s fair to say that the district was at a high point in terms of its good relationships with stakeholders when Dr. Devore retired. The teacher and classified unions were on good terms with the district, the PTA and EEF folks worked well with the district, and the district’s relations with community groups and city governments were very functional and cordial. Without exception, all of those relationships have suffered severe setbacks under the current district leadership, and some have collapsed altogether, generally as a result of the tactics and manipulations that are Lean King’s modus operandi. Where once there was trust there is now distrust, where there was optimism there is pessimism, and where there were groups working toward common purposes there are now adversaries with mutual suspicions.

We were all, as a community, willing to give Mr. King a chance when he arrived, and to overlook what seemed to many of us to be a poor choice of superintendent on the part of the school board. In retrospect, that willingness to give him the benefit of the doubt was a mistake, but it was, nonetheless, the right thing to do. How could we have known that the board of trustees, which had been so ably guided and advised by Dr. Devore, would allow themselves to be led so blindly and wildly astray by a slick manipulator whose primary gift is orchestrated self-promotion? And then, as those early months passed, the climate of open communication and consensus was replaced by fear and intimidation, which then seemed to move down the org. chart like a weed. From the district office staff onward to the principals and school staff, to the teachers and parents, and finally to the community at large and the city folks. The advice all around became, “keep low and don’t make waves, or else”. Of course, with hindsight being 20-20, it’s clear that we’ve all waited too long to speak up with one voice, and that by our lack of action we’ve allowed things to disintegrate to such a state.

This blog grew out of a conversation that started out with the hopeful idea that the new superintendent will absolutely recognize the disastrous damage that his predecessor has caused, and the extent to which the school board is oblivious or complicit. Then we had a realization: The school board has regarded Lean King as some sort of hero on a pedestal and has made no secret of that, so it’s unlikely that the new guy will aspire to do anything different, and could see the emulation of Mr. King as his path of least resistance. This frightening realization, that the school board’s Lean-love will cause the new superintendent to use the disastrous past four years as some kind of playbook, made it clear that all EUSD stakeholders must speak with some cohesiveness, and that we must give people a way to do so without the fear of reprisal that has kept so many at bay since King’s arrival. Though we (the bloggers) are involved in EUSD in various ways, we all regularly hear conversations, and have conversations, about how things seem so tense, how the teachers and administrators are on edge and the staff seems angry, the parent groups are fighting with each other and with the district, and the superintendent has so alienated the City of Encinitas folks that it’s unlikely there will be any constructive dialog in that area for some time.

So, when we hear a conversation, we’re going to put it here, assuming it’s not told to any of us in confidence. (Hence, the blog name: As EUSD in Conversation.) It’s surprising how each of us, in her/his own role, hears the same things, over and over and over, and then the people who are venting say, “But, we can’t do really do anything about this, right?” Well, in theory, even the school district is a democracy, and all it will take is enough people wanting the same thing to get something done. That may mean that the current rubber-stamp board will suddenly get concerned and re-involve themselves. More likely, it seems to us, they are too out of touch and self-absorbed in being “The Board” to really “get it”, and that will probably mean that the election of 2010 will be a watershed event. In fairness to the newest board member, she‘s too new on the scene to be categorized one way or the other, so our jury is still out about her. She may prove better, or just as bad, but the four veterans have definitely been disastrous since Mr. King arrived and began so expertly pulling their strings. In any case, something will change. What happens next is for all of us, the involved and concerned, to determine. One thing is evident: Things must not continue as they have been if the district is to be returned to some semblance of its former goodness and high caliber. If you feel strongly about this as well, please join us in discussion