Parent Councils United Meeting Thursday, March 27

I apologize for the delay in reporting what happened last Thursday evening at Tucker High School.

Parent Councils United held their first Town Hall Meeting and I hope to see many more of them. They invited many school district senior administrators to listen to feedback from parents and other stakeholders.

The format of the meeting was very good. Instead of individuals asking questions only to receive "non-answers," the moderator posed 3 broad questions to everyone and then the attendees broke into small groups to discuss them. The comments were recorded and summarized for the administrators to hear. At the end there was a small Q&A session during which most of the comments & questions were related to the topics of the meeting.

There was a noticeable absence of the usual frustration that develops during most school district public meetings. Overall it was a very positive and well run meetings.

As I mentioned earlier, I hope Parent Councils United will hold more of these meetings. Putting district employees in an observer capacity changes the dynamic and I felt conversations among attendees brought out many of the challenges the district faces without the customary defensiveness that administrators display.

The goal of helping resolve the concerns of the stakeholders is still elusive, but Parent Councils United has started a positive tool to move the district another baby-step down that road.

*This blog represents only my opinions and does not represent any one else or any organization.