Since the summer of 2023, the school committee’s policy subcommittee has met only sporadically – averaging about once every six months – and those meetings have focused almost exclusively on policies regulating flags and recess in the Marblehead Public Schools. This represents two missteps:
First, while policy proposals on flags and recess are of interest to particular segments of the general population, the school committee is in danger of overstepping its policy responsibilities and interfering in district operations, which are the purview of the superintendent and his team.
Second, with its hyperfocus on flags and recess, the school committee has neglected its primary role of establishing and reviewing educational goals and policies for the schools in the district, consistent with the requirements of law and the statewide goals and standards established by the Board of Education.
Clear, updated policies are a foundational component of good governance. The Massachusetts Association of School Committees (“MASC”) plays a guiding role in helping school committees develop, review and update policies. Since September 2023, MASC has issued three policy newsletters recommending the creation, revision, and/or elimination of 49 different policies. These recommendations have not been addressed by the Marblehead school committee.
As a school committee member committed to good governance, I will:
Develop a policy review schedule to catch the district up in its review and revision of educational policies.
Create district policies through a structured, public process, free from political agendas and reactionary decision-making.
Stay out of operations by creating clear, principle-based policies the superintendent can implement as needed.
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