I’ve written various posts about the Avery Doninger case. I’ve focused on Avery’s role. I’ve talked about the role of the Principal and Superintendent. I’ve touched upon the role of the board of education, but haven’t really talked much about our role in this.

The school board is elected by us. We have a responsibility to be involved in our schools. As parents, we need to be in our schools advocating for our children. As business people we need to be in our schools advocating for our future employees. As citizens, we need to be involved in the electoral process and holding the officials we elect accountable.

When I first started covering the Doninger case, I spoke with my father-in-law about it. He is a retired Special Agent for the U.S. Treasury Department. In 2002, he served as a member of the Tri-Town Amity Investigation Committee, which investigated the operating deficit of the Amity Regional School District for the fiscal years ending June30, 2000 and June 30, 2001.

In the cover letter to their report, they said,

Before the detail is discussed, it is critical to understand that the primary cause of the deficit is a culture which has been years in the making and, in fact, continues to this day. This culture is one of a lack of accountability that emanates from the Amity Board of Education

(Emphasis added)

In a few weeks, voters across the state will go to the polls to elect board of education members. Are you asking serious questions about not only how much money your local school board will spend, but also, how wisely will it spend it? What will your local school district be doing for preparing students for twenty first century careers where so much takes place online? Will it enact draconian measures to thwart students’ communications online, or will it work with students to help them become stronger advocates both online and offline?

Today, I received an email which had originally been sent to Jon Schoenhorn, Avery’s lawyer, and ultimately was forwarded to me. With the author’s permission, I want to highlight the key portions.

Dear Mr. Schoenhorn,

I would like you to convey to Ms. Doninger my support of her first amendment rights, and my unhappiness at the behavior of her school administrators. Her case will help me, as a school board member in
West Hartford, illustrate what administrators ought not to do.

...

There is a deep principal at work here that has to do with the rule of law -- you're handling that. There is also a deep principal that has to do with the responsibilities we as elected officials give to our administrators: we expect the teenagers to act like teenagers now and again; however we expect the adults to act with much more maturity and responsibility when we authorize them to act as school leaders. I am saddened by how often school administrators fail this basic test, and worse, how often they then mobilize their entire bureaucracy to back them up. This was a problem that I wish we had left behind in the 60's, but it is clear that we have not.

Anyway, I wish her, and you, the best in your efforts.

Yours,
Terry Schmitt

We should expect school officials to act with more maturity, and we should expected elected board of education members to be held accountable. I have written several emails to the current members of the Region 10 Board of Education and none of them have ever responded.

Most notable, this is an email that I sent to the head of the board of education over a month ago, which I never received a reply to:

Now that the Board of Education sees fit to talk about the Avery Doninger case as explained in the recent Press Release issued perhaps you will be willing to talk about the case and the ramifications for the school district.

First and foremost, do you believe that this has been handled well by the school administration? Do you believe that the money spent on legal fees and potential changes in insurance premiums is justified and beneficial to the school district?

Do you believe you have been served well by your insurance company? Do you think it helps the school district to have a lawyer representing the school administration compare the school to an asylum and the students to inmates?

Do you believe that this is improving or hurting the reputation of the school district, both within Connecticut and nationally? Based on what I am seeing, it seems to be hurting the school district. I would encourage you to read my latest analysis in
Of Pitch forks and burning torches
http://www.orient-lodge.com/node/2482

Of particular note, how do you see this case affecting the efforts of the school district to hire a good superintendent?

Perhaps most importantly, do you believe that there has been sufficient oversight of the Board of Education and the school administration by the community as a whole, including taxpayers and the media? Is there sufficient accountability?

I will be publishing this on Orient Lodge. You can add a comment there directly, or send me any comments.

Avery Doninger used language in a blog post that school administrators found offensive. She was barred from running for re-election, but the students wrote her in anyway, and she won, whether or not the school is willing to recognize her victory.

The board of education, by contrast has not used any language online. They have refused to be held accountable. They are allowed to run for re-election, and those who are running for re-election or for higher office should not be elected.

Over five years ago, voters did not hold the Board of Education in Amity sufficiently accountable. This resulted in millions of dollars in over-expenditures, including a large over-expenditure in legal expenses. Let us hope that the voters in Region 10 learn from the mistakes of the voters in Amity and don’t repeat their mistakes.