[speedgibson] Speed Gibson: District 281 Names Financial Adivsory Council

[Email subscription to blog articles]

Posted by Speed Gibson:
 District 281 Names Financial Adivsory Council
http://speedgibson.powerblogs.com/posts/1218520224.shtml


   At a short Special Meeting preceding a Work Session this evening, the
   Robbinsdale Area School Board named six citizens to its new Financial
   Advisory Council (FAC). I was one of the 13 other "excellent"
   applicants. Truth be told, I wasn't even close, for two alternates
   were also named. There had been some thought of increasing the citizen
   contingent to eight, but they elected to stay with the six in the
   by-laws. The names will soon be up on the District web site.
   I am disappointed, no question about it. My best guess is that what I
   see this Council doing is not what they want done. OK, maybe I just
   wasn't excellent enough. No matter what, the Board had to disappoint
   at least 11 applicants and it really doesn't matter now whether the
   rest of us were 9th or 19th this round.
   The good news in all this is that I'm now free to pursue my
   "consumer-oriented" financial statements as you'll see. I won't have
   any help or sanction, so it will take a lot of my time, but it's
   possible that the FAC may come up with some applicable information for
   me. This also leaves me free to work on District communications, which
   I think most would agree needs improvement as the Strategic Plan
   identifies.
   This also means I don't have to pull any punches here on the blog, not
   that I have, not that I would as junk scientists, junk economists,
   junk environmentalists, certain Legislators and a certain Governor can
   attest. But here in 281, I only see good people trying to do what they
   think is right and I will continue to give them the benefit of the
   doubt - and another point of view.
   I'll try to sit in on at least the first few FAC meetings, to see if
   they will try to function independently of the Board and/or the
   Administration. There have been several signs along the way that tell
   me that the FAC is expected to be "supportive" of the District.
   Indeed, many reports prepared by other such commissions in other
   districts have no insight and are little more than rubber stamp
   approvals. I expect more from our group.
   That's why I and others balked at the initial draft of the FAC
   By-Laws, where the citizen representatives would have had very little
   say. So while I'll be missing out on the fun for at least two years, I
   can at least take some pride in that I have helped give these six
   citizen appointees of the 2008 FAC the power to elect their own chair
   and the votes to set their own course.