Great moments in public education
Here’s an insightful quote from Doug Martinson, the president of the Huntsville City School Board:
“We’re not professional educators,” he said. “We don’t really know what an educator is supposed to do.”
Well doesn’t that just make you feel better! Maybe he should put that on his campaign literature next time he runs. If I were running against him I would make an ad saying, “Doug Martinson: He doesn’t really know what an educator is supposed to do, but he did stay in a Holiday Inn Express.”
The quote was a justification he gave for the board choosing a new method to appraise the performance of Huntsville superintendent Ann Roy Moore. I like to call the new method the Kim Jong Il popularity contest.
The Kim Jong Il method consists of evaluations from employees and a “professional evaluator.” This crack group of individuals graded Moore in thirteen different categories. And wouldn’t you know they gave her a perfect 4 out of 4 in every category. The graduation rate in Huntsville is 63% and yet the head of the school system was given a flawless report card. Just seems, well, suspicious. I’m not arguing that the Huntsville schools are poor or that Dr. Moore hasn’t done a good job. But perfect scores? Perfect tells me there is no room for improvement and I simply do not believe that is true.
The five board members also graded Dr. Moore, albeit anonymously. Each member’s overall grades ranged from 2.8 to 4.0 (again on a 4.0 scale). Thats right, one member gave Moore a 70% (C-), while another board member gave her a 100% (A+). Pretty interesting.
As a taxpayer I am glad to see that Moore’s highest grade – a 4.0 from the board members and the Kim Jong Il team – came in the fiscal leadership category. Clearly both those who oversee her and her loyal disciples think she is a good steward of our tax dollars.
Sounds like Mr Martinson has a great future ahead as a consumer/citizen representative on the various boards/commissions/tribunals our fabian future holds.
Doug Martinson, Huntsville school system’s very own Prissy (from Gone With the Wind)…
2006: “I know ever’thing they is to know ’bout what professional educators do, so vote for me!”
2010: “Lawdy, we got to have an expert! I don’t know nothin’ ’bout what professional educators do!”
Oops… that should have said 2009, not 2010.
It sounds to me like they are grading Ann on a similar scale that they are grading many of the students. Give a high enough grade and they can pass on to someone else. Maybe the hope is that she will pass on to another office ;).