Election day is next Tuesday, November 2nd. I appreciate the time so many of you have taken to visit this web site. This is an an effort to summarize our campaign, set the record straight, and make our case for your support:
Why support Brendan Walsh:
Invested |
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Proven Results |
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Philosophy of Board Service: The Board must adhere to policy and is not free to do whatever they please whenever they please. The Board operates transparently and uses community feedback to create the financial and operational environment to allow our professional educators to do what they do best – educate our community’s children as well as they have for decades.
My platform:
- Strive to maintain the Continued Operational Discipline that helped us achieve our exemplary financial and operational strength
- Adoption and Execution of a Continuous Improvement Methodology
- Drive pessimism, distrust, and negativity out by creating a Culture of Achievement
Setting the record straight and responding to rumors:
- I do NOT support Open Enrollment or becoming a School of Choice district. I have voted against this each of the 5 times the Board, by state law, has been required to vote on it. (proof here: 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010)
- I support strict enforcement of our Enrollment Eligibility policy and associated guidelines, which I believe are superior to enforcement models espoused by others. (details here)
- I did NOT reduce public participation time at public meetings, I was in fact the ONLY Board member to oppose this motion. (details here)
- I oppose any effort to increase athletic participation fees and have never voted to increase them. The net cost of these programs represents less than 1% of our budget and pays great dividends.
- I oppose outsourcing of support staff. Our new contract models are a better means of achieving financial stability with our employees.
- I oppose efforts to run free All Day Kindergarten only at one elementary school. The vast majority of parents prefer a no-fee ADK.
- I think Grosse Pointe North is an outstanding school with opportunities for improvement like any school in our district or anywhere else. Over-indexing on a single data point is a dangerous and questionable strategy. More details here.
Examples of work products created by Brendan Walsh:
Supported by hundreds of members of our great community:
- Endorsed by the mayors of the Park, City, Farms, Woods and Shores
- Extensive list of community testimonials available here
I look with unbridled optimism toward our future, bound only by our creativity, fueled by the spark of hope within each and every one of our students, and focused by the harsh experience of our recent past. Pride, pragmatism, knowledge, resolve, dedication, and trust have been my toolkit. Progress has been my product. Pride and progress in and for our district should be our guiding principles. Pride and progress will continue to be my motivation should I gain your support on November 2nd.
(Brendan Walsh, League of Women Voters Candidate Forum, October 19, 2010)
One response to “The Case for Brendan Walsh”
One more point:
The general public does not always understand that MEAP scores may be influenced by our special needs students. In much of the state many students with special needs are excluded from participating in regular education testing because they have not been sufficiently exposed to the general education curriculum to bother testing them. Inclusion for most students with special needs in general education curriculum has been successfully supported in our district. Our students spend more time fully included than most “like districts” in the state and we do it in a way that supports their learning. (Like classroom assistants, collaborative classes, support classes, etc.) We test more of our students with special needs than any of our like districts. I presented that data before my term ended. The result may be that MEAP scores are a bit lower in some places. That, to me, is a badge of honor and an indication that we are doing things right!