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By Dr. Rebecca Hamman
Being elected is exciting and you have an opportunity to make many changes. Small or large, your most challenging mission is to improve learning. Hopefully, after 16 years, the Stamford Connecticut Board of Education (BOE) is ready to take this advice seriously. Ruled by one party (six majority and three minority members), there always seems to be ulterior motives. Just maybe, this time around, the new team of nine can get business done in a healthy manner.
Since selecting and supervising the superintendent, setting policy and developing budget are the main responsibilities for all board of educations across the United States, there are high stakes involved. Can these individuals collaborate and listen? Will they stand on principle and integrity? Here are some helpful tips for our three incoming members:
1. Students need to take priority, not political gaming. We need parents, not bureaucrats, to make decisions about what is best for all children. Case in point, the BOE President was just voted out and two current Stamford Public School (SPS) parents and one former parent, were voted in on November 4th. The Stamford community (families, educators and taxpayers) sent a loud message—stop playing politics with our kids.
2. The BOE consists of nine members, not six. The last six years, the majority party has used the caucus method to garner votes before BOE meetings. Those who are not loyal to this method are pushed out and minority members are often ignored or bullied. Can this entitled version of ‘democracy-our-way’ be finally eliminated?
3. Budget determines program priorities. In Stamford, the superintendent’s budget is set in December and presented to the Board of Education and stakeholders in January. By February the budget is voted on and then it becomes the Board of Education’s budget. Ideally, if any major changes are to be made, it is in December or at the latest, early January. Since budget transparency has been an ongoing issue in this city, the new board of education has their work cut out for them. The superintendent should be able to back up all budget decisions with hard data. Will her proposed budget be strong-armed and passed again or finally be challenged?
4. All programs need to be reviewed for effectiveness. High achieving districts have consistent systemic review cycles in place for policies, curriculums, professional development and assessments. Knowing follow-through and achievement results have been less than stellar in the SPS, this needs to be an immediate priority with budget discussions:
New members should not just pass a budget until they are presented with real facts. Empty promises and lack of results should not be the deciding factor.
5. Updated policies help maintain high standards. Unfortunately, this BOE has refused to assess its own policies (e.g., 5000.1 Equity and Diversity). In addition, the $400,000 Day Pitney LLP investigation (2022), current records continue to show that 74% of policies have not been reviewed for at least 10-25 years and only 26% have been updated in the last 6 years—a very disappointing and expensive track record for this BOE. For current and new BOE members, this should be a strong indicator as to why achievement and administrator accountability remain stagnant.
6. Just five BOE votes are needed to make change. Watch how our BOE members vote. Do they know BOE state law? Do they understand that although they delegate responsibilities to the superintendent, they have the ultimate authority? Do they truly listen and collaborate with students, parents, and teachers about all issues? Do they take the superintendent’s evaluation seriously? Do they prefer to listen to city and contracted lawyers who bend state law and policies or support truth? BOE members can operate powerfully when they bloc together in a bipartisan manner and stand up to unspoken political party rules.
7. Most important, we need an experienced superintendent. A superintendent consulting firm will soon be engaging stakeholders and identifying needs (January-February); searching for superintendent candidates (February-April); and working with this new board of education to conduct interviews and help a finalist take the helm (April-June). These consultants also realize this board is very inexperienced and will help them work more cohesively. It is desperately needed.
This is a crucial time for SPS. Are the new BOE members ready and willing to help build a functional board? Let’s hope they will back up their campaign promises by listening, asking hard questions and ultimately using common sense when voting.
Trust also needs to be rebuilt. Stamford can be forgiving, but will our students, parents, teachers, and taxpayers? Actions speak louder than words and so do votes—they are watching.
Dr. Rebecca Hamman currently serves as a member of the Stamford Board of Education. She is a career educator (teacher & administrator) and has worked 11 years elementary and 15 years secondary. Her comments are her own, and do not represent the official views of the Board of Education or its committees.
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