While the same community elects each Board member and each is committed to serve the best interests of students and community, members may have different perspectives on issues. Were we to live in a perfect world where wisdom, justice, and humility are exercised by all, our life would be far more productive and peaceful. I was asked recently whether I consider it unhealthy to cast a minority dissenting vote on issues before the school board. No, I do not consider it unhealthy. Likewise, I do not accept the notion that community members who watch the City Council on community television do so to see how people make snide remarks about other people.
Most citizens watch to be informed and educated.
The overwhelming majority of individuals who speak before the City Council are intelligent, astute, and serious people who offer a certain perspective. They have included school superintendent James Brown, community activists Dick Seeley and Hal Weber, representatives of the League of Women Voters, Chamber of Commerce, Homeowner groups, business and professional leaders, City staff, and other Glendale residents. Likewise, those who address the school Board are sincere, concerned, individuals who offer a different perspective or, sometimes, express support for the Board and District. And while, on occasion, a speaker is abusive or makes a snide remark, that is the exception and not the rule. Each member is a unique individual and each is doing his or her best to serve the interest of children and the community in the best way they know.