Vive la flip-flop

A little over a week ago, I wrote here about my plans to run for re-election to Belmont School Committee. I wrote, at the time, about what a challenging and rewarding year it had been. How I was proud of the votes I’d taken on the budget, funding for the Library Aide positions and about the challenges that lay ahead, with an even deeper hole to budget our way out of. It’s with sadness and some regret that I write now to inform the B2 audience that I’ve decided to forgo my run for School Committee this year.

Obviously, this is a change of course. Up until last week, I fully intended to run again for re-election. The last week, however, brought new charges in both my personal and professional life that, I concluded, would make it difficult for me to carry out my duties responsibly as a candidate for re-election and, should I win, a School Committee member.  I know that some will be disappointed by my decision, which has been a difficult one for me to reach. I ask for your support.

This will be a busy Spring, with both town-wide elections and a likely push for a Proposition 2 1/2 override. I look forward to continuing my involvement and engagement in issues before the town’s leadership and to making BloggingBelmont a source for progressive news and views on the debates going on within Belmont.

- Paul

Yes, I’m running for re-election!

It has been an eventful year on the Committee. When I came on board last April, the town and our nation were in the midst of a wrenching economic collapse and looking at huge decreases in tax revenues and state aid.  Ultimately, a Federal stimulus package helped us avoid drastic cuts to Town and School services. I was proud to work with the rest of our Committee to complete a budget that had the School Department living within our means, but that maintained vital services.  I was proud to stand as one of only two School Committee members to vote in favor of an additional allocation from the Town’s free cash to keep libraries open and functioning in our elementary schools. And I was overjoyed when, two months later, I and so many other Belmontonians dared to dream big about the future: marching to the polls to pass a debt exclusion to fund construction of a new Wellington Elementary School.

I get sworn in for School Committee, sans Lincoln Bible

Alas, 2010 and planning for the FY 2011 budget will be an even bigger challenge than the year that passed. As you’ve likely read in the Globe, towns across the Bay State are facing steep cuts in services that could translate into teacher layoffs and larger class sizes without help from the the Federal government, the state, voters – or all three. Belmont is no different. If anything, our decision – as a town – to put off fixes to a large structural deficit when times were good, means that we entered this recession in a precarious position, fiscally.

What that all means is that we will need strong voices on the School Committee to stand with the administration in articulating  the mission of our public schools, our vision for the future and the necessity to maintain financial support for our public schools, our exceptionally talented staff and our amazing students. I’m running so that I can be that voice, and I’m running so I can continue to work with an exceptional group of professionals, including our new Superintendent, George Entwistle, and my colleagues on School Committee.

As some of you may have read in today’s paper, School Committee could shape up to be a competitive race this year, and possibly one with competing visions for our schools. That’s become a rare phenomenon in recent years here in Belmont.  I’m excited by the prospect of a full-throated debate about the challenges facing our town and schools and by the promise of serving Belmont for another term on School Committee! I’ll be hitting the streets with my clipboard to collect signatures in the coming day. Then, as now, I ask for your support.

Sincerely,

Paul F. Roberts

Please donate a couple hours of your time to do something very worthwhile for the Foundation for Belmont Education and our Public Schools.  We have never faced a bigger budget crisis in Belmont so fundraisers like these are essential to keep the learning up to the standard we’ve come to love.

Megan Pickette and Susan Black are in the process of recruiting both adult and student volunteers for the upcoming spelling bee on February 6.  They need volunteers in the cafe from 3:30-5:30 and 5:15-7:15.  Middle and High School students can get some Community Service points for helping hold “quiet” signs this year while the kids on stage are hearing the words to spell. If you have some that are interested in holding the signs in the auditorium, we have openings.

If you’re interested, contact Megan Pickette | 617-489-1647 | mfpickette(at)msn(dot)com

Remember, the Spelling Bee goes on Belmont Cable over and over and the kids really do enjoy seeing themselves.  I’m one of the judges and there is no pressure – just friendship and a love of vocabulary.

More info can be found here.

I say this as a kind of long-winded way of wondering whether “What” is the right question to ask at all, and point you to a great discussion I heard this weekend on Speaking of Faith, a public radio show that explores issues surrounding faith. This week’s show was titled “The Meaning of Intelligence,” and I think it should really be required listening for anyone who’s interested in the question of how to improve education in the U.S. in the 21st century.  The focus of the show is an extended interview with UCLA professor Mike Rose who teaches in the graduate program in Education and Information Studies. Rose, whose background is in Cognitive Psychology, has written extensively about education, poverty, the nature of effective (and ineffective) pedagogy,and so on.

Speaking of Faith tackles "the meaning of intelligence" and education

Instead of asking the “What” question about education, Rose asks a lot of “Why” questions? “Why do we need education in a democracy?” “Why do discussions and debate about the value of an education tend to fall into the same patterns/ruts: abstract vs. practical, Ivory Tower vs. School of Hard Knocks, manual versus “intellectual” labor, East/West Coast vs. Middle America?” Most of all, he talks about the importance of education to our democracy, and how our discussions about educating a “21st century workforce” tend to give short shrift to the other things we need (public) education for: educating the next generation of citizens and voters, artists and writers and poets. Talking only about producing future workers, Rose argues, really leads to an impoverished discussion of education, itself.  Rose’s most recent work, appropriately is entitled “Why School?,” where Rose takes on, among other things, the impact of the No Child Left Behind legislation on learning and the way that testing tends to narrow the scope of what happens in the classroom.

Its a really fascinating talk with a guy who doesn’t shy away from asking the big, important questions about the role of schools and education in our democracy and how the way we do education in the U.S. might be changed so that students can reach their fullest potential. Check it out!

But now the bill’s come due: a local election looms with lots of open TM slots to fill. A good way to send a message that Belmont likes Town Meeting the way it is, and is ready to do what it takes to keep this venerable New England institution going strong is to stand for election.

Town Meeting Wants You!

I’m up for re-election in Precinct 8 for my second, three year term this year. I can honestly say that Town Meeting is a great way to get engaged in town politics and make a difference. For working folks or parents with young children, its also a VERY manageable time commitment. A couple evenings a year – that’s about it.  Now the League of Women Voters is sponsoring an orientation session where you can learn more about Town Meeting and what you need to do to run.

Here’s the information:

Are You Concerned about

Belmont’s Roads, Schools, Taxes?

Then run for Town Meeting!

Learn about Town Government and How You Can Become a Town Meeting Member

Thursday, January 14, 2010, 7:30 pm.

All Saints’ Church (Brewster Hall)

17 Clark St., Belmont, MA

A Panel of Current Town Meeting Members will Discuss the Importance of Town Meeting, what it Means to Be a Town Meeting Member, and Provide Tips on Running.

Town Clerk Delores Keefe will provide election information.

For more information on Elections and Local Government go to:

http://belmont.ma.lwvnet.org/elections.html

Sponsored by the Belmont League of Women Voters

Education Fund

So where has BloggingBelmont been? Not dead, but certainly in a deep hibernation during these short winter days. Obligations at work, home, Temple and on School Committee have kept me from my appointed rounds here on BloggingBelmont. Frankly, I’ve also struggled to balance my dual roles as citizen blogger and elected official — a balancing act that is, I’ll admit, tougher than I anticipated. Readers -notably the cryptic Wayne G. have complained. You’ll just have to forgive me.

That said, the New Year brings a new start. My plans for BloggingBelmont are both to narrow the focus of what I’m writing about and, at the same time, to broaden the discussion and variety of information that readers enjoy with some changes that make it easier for community members to contribute content of their own and share in the discussion. My work with School Committee is focusing more on communications and outreach, so I hope to be able to share with you some of the work we’ll be doing to get information out to the public about goings on with the Committee and the schools as we navigate a challenging 2010 and look ahead to a contentious vote on a Prop 2 1/2 override sometime in the Spring . As always: I’m anxious for contributions from readers and community members. If you’ve got material or thoughts you want to share, email me at paul(at)bloggingbelmont(dot)com!

The school community and the Belmont community are shocked and saddened by the death of one of our seniors at Belmont High School early Thursday afternoon, November 5th, 2009.

Since that time, school representatives have worked closely with Belmont Police and MBTA authorities to more fully understand the details of this very tragic situation.

Significant effort and resources have been directed to addressing the needs of students, staff and parents as they attempt to cope with this loss.

In the days and weeks to come, we will remain attentive and responsive to the needs that emerge from this tragedy.  We are encouraged and heartened by the support of the Belmont community and other neighboring communities.

Dr. George Entwistle
Superintendent of Schools

As things stand now, the MBTA is still investigating the accident and has been making repairs to the fencing along the length of tracks from the High School down to Brighton Street. For those of you who haven’t read it, the Citizen Herald article on the tragedy is here. A link to the press conference is here.

Attendees waiting to sign in

But there were signs from the start that my fears were misplaced. Maybe it was the  long line of attendees –spanning three generations –waiting to sign in. Or maybe it was the inspirational video of the Black Eyed Peas leading a 20,000 person flash mob through a choreographed dance routine that kicked off the Dialog — a video that, as Superintendent Entwistle explained– illustrated the possibilities of what even perfect strangers can accomplish when they let go of their doubts and inhibitions and work together.

Starting off with an inspirational video

Dialog topics getting registered

The big board of topics

From there, frankly, things got even better: Superintendent Entwistle and his staff at BPS, including Director of Technology Steve Mazzola and crew, did a masterful job orchestrating this BPS be-in: there was a clear process by which dialog topics were generated and disseminated to the assembled. A large schedule directed attendees to numbered, color coded tables where their idea of interest was being discussed, while laptops at each table allowed the fruits of the various dialogs to be captured and posted online for further discussion afterwards. (B2 will post a link to the dialogs when they become available within the next day or so.) Details, right down to a hurry up 20 minute dinner break went off without a hitch — no small feat, given the size of the crowd and the fact that nobody in town had ever done something like this before.

One dialog topic

Topic ideas grouped by likeness

Another dialog topic

I sat in on three separate dialogs last night. The first was about introducing early foreign language instruction in the Belmont Public Schools. There were around eight of us gathered around the table, and the breakdown of participants reflected the diversity of voices at last night’s dialog: there were parents of current elementary and high school students, a current BHS sophomore, a retiree and a current foreign language teacher in the BPS. The discussion — much of it led and informed by the student at the table, not the adults, focused on the critical importance of foreign language training to the long term competitiveness of the U.S., the shortcomings of our existing foreign language requirements and curriculum and ways to get students studying earlier, despite budget and scheduling restraints. I took notes and I think some great ideas came out of the discussion.

In the second session, I sat in on a couple dialogs. One, proposed and led by Rep. Will Brownsberger, addressed the idea of online learning and ways that BPS might introduce online coursework as a way to broaden its current curriculum offerings, serve the diverse needs of its students and save money. Again: students, community members, BPS staff and parents filled out the group and the discussion was eye opening and constructive.

Clearly, this isn’t the dawn of some educational Age of Aquarius. There are big, hairy, hard to solve problems and obstacles that surfaced in almost every dialog last night: budget and resource constraints, testing mandates from the state and federal government, the structure of the current school day and school year, which leave little room for innovation. But the success of last night’s Dialog now gives Superintendent Entwistle a great resource with which he can formulate his own 18 month plan for the BPS, and subsequent 18 month plans after that. Namely: a grass-roots, ground-up view of what ideas, hopes and concerns animate our community. Without a doubt, there will be low hanging fruit to pick from last night’s Dialog – small ideas and tweaks that might be implemented without much fuss. There are also bigger, more revolutionary ideas out there that might take years to realize, or that may never get off the ground. But the Superintendent and BPS deserve loads of credit for taking a chance with the Dialog and for showing the community that they’re willing to throw open the doors and their minds to any and all ideas for ways to improve the type and quality of education Belmont offers in its schools. As one high school student –looking somewhat stunned — offered in conclusion last night: “It was just cool to hear that adults and teachers were thinking a lot of the same things that we were!”

One of the requirements for participating in the Dialog was that you had to leave your “baggage” behind — your fears, preconceptions and cynicism. I think that we all dropped a lot of baggage last night and hope that will make the process of moving forward all the easier. Well done, Belmont!

The Dialog, which will run from 4:30PM to 8:00PM Tuesday evening at the BHS Field House is an amazing opportunity for community members and other stake holders to participate in a wide open discussion about the future of both schools and public education in our community. To reserve your space, RSVP to Cathy Grant at 617 993-5401 or by email at cgrant(at)belmont.k12.ma.us.

Town residents, teachers, students, civic leaders (including School Committee members) and administrators will all attend. As you may have heard, there is no set agenda for the meeting. Participants will decide which topics are part of the dialog. However, Superintendent Entwistle has identified two “Big Idea” topics that will get things rolling and (likely) lead to other side discussions. They are:

Big Idea: Round 1: “The Belmont Public School District develops the talents and effectively meets the learning needs of every student.” This discussion may lead to big picture conversations about how best to prepare Belmont’s students to be productive workers in a 21st century economy, how to produced motivated learners and engaged citizens, and so on.

Big Idea: Round 2: “The Belmont Public School District is an adaptable, sustainable organization encouraged by the community to pursue innovation and continuous improvement so as to meet expectations for high performance and organizational excellence.” This topic may lead to discussions about how BPS can best use the resources available to continue its tradition of excellence, how to continue attracting the best and brightest to work and study in Belmont, and so on.

This is a great opportunity to make your voice heard, share your big ideas about how to improve public education in town and to help shape the future direction of our schools! I hope to see you there!!

What types of programs might be considered? A recent article in the New York Times (thanks to the Belmont Yahoo Group for the heads up)  highlights the steps that other suburbs are taking to curb carbon emissions and to encourage. They include town-financed home energy improvements and zoning changes to allow businesses to generate their own electricity with wind turbines, solar and other green energy sources.

The big test of the next three to five years is whether Belmont will be able to move from planning and committees to actual implementation of some of the great recommendations and ideas in the CAP, and whether Belmont residents and businesses will get a helpful hand in making their homes and businesses greener — or continue to try to do the right thing in the face of a stiff headwind.