Time to Pick Up the Ball Revisited

I originally published this in May of last year. Given the events since, I thought it might be worth looking back at how we all felt a year ago. If I may gloat, my optimism was justified; The cynicism around me was not. If there's one thing I would change in this post it's my optimism about Spark Bookhart. I was disappointed in his unfortunate opposition to the school closings.

There are people picking up the ball and running with it at a time when an ace quarterback has entered the field.

By now, you've all undoubtedly heard that we have a new school superintendent. While standing in line at the coffee shop this morning I heard a man say, "We know who the superintendent for the next year is going to be." I wanted to respond, but was at a loss for words. You can't argue with cynics, and there is some truth in what he said. The odds of success are low.

In spite of that, I'm cautiously optimistic. I've said for a while that the chief problem of the Kansas City School District is that there are too many people pointing at someone else saying, "Why don't you pick up the ball." Meanwhile, the ball just lays there, waiting for a snap, a kick . . . something.

Why am I optimistic? For starters, the unanimous support of the school board is a better starting place than the 5 to 3 vote for the last superintendent. My first impression of Covington is that he's a listener, a quality I don't often hear discussed when it comes to leaders. In a world as complex as ours, it's impossible for a leader to be an expert in all of the jobs under him. That's why I regard the ability to listen as being in the top ten essential skills of a leader.

There's also the matter of his history of working with the community. Stephanie Garcia, board president in Pueblo, Colorado where Covington currently works, told the Star, "The task of education is so great, you've got to get a community effort behind it." Efforts like Airick West's BE1! campaign and Spark Bookhart's "All Hands On" campaign have arrived at a time when citizen involvement in the public sphere is at a historic upturn. Both of these efforts are focused on students rather than on district politics.

In short, there are people picking up the ball and running with it at a time when an ace quarterback has entered the field. (I list Bookhart here because he has said from the beginning that school governance isn't the primary thrust of his work. Though these efforts are not yet public, friends tell me that Bookhart's group is working on several initiatives that directly support students and schools. As far as I know, the same can't be said of "Do the Right Thing.")

Will this cluster of events lead to a turnaround? I don't have a crystal ball. I can tell you what will prevent a turnaround. Finger pointing. Excessive focus on past mistakes. Using past mistakes as an excuse for not supporting worthwhile remedies in the present. Failure to pay attention, to attend public meetings, to scrutinize the actions of the current board and its new superintendent. Failure to support actions that support students. Failure to support students directly through mentoring, tutoring, community groups, etc.

I remember a once common bumper sticker that said something like, "If you don't vote, you can't complain." I'd say to anyone who cares about the future of the school district, If you don't have something constructive to contribute, keep quiet.