Rarely do politicians pull back the curtain and let the public see how political appointments are made, but Harford County Councilman Richard Slutzky has done just that by introducing the resolution to open up the selection process for school board members. Designed as a temporary fix until elections are approved by the General Assembly, the resolution establishes a 7-member panel composed of elected officials and representatives from the county executive’s office which will review and endorse candidates for the school board in view of the voting public.
Currently, school board members are appointed by the governor who relies on endorsements from local officials; a process that serves almost no one. Local officials are often flying blind because they have no formal way to recruit or to vet the candidates, candidates are dependent on having the right political connections and the public has no way of knowing who’s in the running or who’s backing whom.
Such is the case with the Bel Air seat on the board of education which will soon be vacated by current president Tom Fidler. Fidler reportedly favors a certain candidate as his replacement, one who does not support an elected school board, and on whose behalf he has been contacting local officials. This type of thing now happens behind closed doors, but may soon be brought into the open.
Unlike the ill-conceived permanent nominating caucus proposed in the last legislative session by Delegate Mary-Dulany James, this panel is composed of officials who answer to the public. Until Harford County gets school board elections, if it’s not the next best thing, at least it’s better than nothing.
To view the resolution, check out this pdf file: BOE Panel Resolution
Thank goodness there will be some rational input into Mr. Fidler’s replacement. As far as I am concerned, Fidler’s choice should be automatically disqualified as more of the same – exactly what we do not need. Bravo Harford County Council!
Finally. I hope that they review and endorse a candidate that actually cares about the height of backstops. This corruption has been going on for far too long!
One step is the begining of a journey. This resolution is a step.
Go Dagger !
I applaud Mr. Slutsky–Again, for staying involved and committed to making a change to the current system. It’s obvious the Superintendent and the BOE resist this change or any change unless it is suggested by them-alone . Mr. Slutsky knows the inner workings of the school administration and remains a thorn in their side. That shouldn’t be however, given his respectful manner with suggestions and solutions which they fail to review or move forward with.
How dare Mr. Slutsky challenge the education industry? What are his qualifications to question the administration and board? Oh yeah, he spent his entire life in the industry and remained a teacher and mentor the entire time. I know Dick fairly well and hold him in the very highest regard. The board and administration have proven time and again that their word is absolutely useless. They will twist the truth until it is totally beyond recognition. Dick Slutsky is incapable of distorting the truth. If Dick says it, I believe it. If anyone outside of classroom teachers within the education industry tell me something I know I will have to research it to know what the truth is. Let’s elect Dick to be the next emperor!
Yansen…dont hold back…tell us how you realy feel !
Thank you Mr. Slutzky and other members of the Harford County Council–at least there will be some constructive process in place to encourage an engaged and knowledgeable individual step up to join the BOE.
Both the Examiner and the Aegis have articles about this very issue in today’s paper. I couldn’t help but see the irony in what the chair of the Harford NAACP stated-that essentially this method would be an unfair to the African American population and the the voters wouldn’t have a say…guess what they don’t have a say now!!??
And isn’t this the same argument they used when arguing against having an elected school board? At least with this resolution our “elected” officials are going to play a pivotal role in recommending/endorsing a qualified candidate.
It is not a perfect system and I for one hope one day we have an elected school board, but I believe that anyone who meets the qualifications and demonstrates a desire to do what is best for the HCPS will be given utmost consideration-regardless of their skin color. To me this sounds like a fair and democratic way to select replacements!
Again hats off to our County Council for attempting to create an effective compromise!