Somewhere kids need to come first. The School Board may not be the leanest operation but it appears that its spending is little more than a mirror of the Council's. Just as the District government rightly bristles at calls to usurp its authority as it solves its problems, so eliminating the institution of the School Board will not solve the city's education woes. Across the nation, city school boards have become convenient scapegoats, as frustrations about schools, budgets, and academic achievement continue to mount. All public education is lousy.
All public education is lousy because of school boards.
The reality is that school boards act and spend as they do, not because there are structural flaws in their positions, but because of the very nature of urban life. It is in the city where the business community is most demanding. It is in the city where community organizations are most aggressive. It is in the city where needs arising from poverty are most severe. It is in the city where the unions are most entrenched.