[speedgibson] Speed Gibson: The Thrill is Gone

[Email subscription to blog articles]

Posted by Speed Gibson:
The Thrill is Gone
http://speedgibson.powerblogs.com/posts/1225000124.shtml


   District 281 Superintendent Stan Mack II [1]will not seek renewal of
   his contract that expires June 30, 2009. In his October 22 letter to
   the Board included in the above link, Mack declared that he will be
   retiring from K-12, then seek a new opportunity in pre-K or higher
   education. This will complete a nine year tenure as Superintendent of
   the Robbinsdale Area Schools.
   The timing is good for the District. Right and/or wrong, Mack has
   become a controversial figure of late, inside and outside the
   organization. It's hard to keep everybody happy in a period of
   declining enrollment, especially in the high cost, highly bureaucratic
   world that is K-12 public education in Minnesota. Perhaps his
   retirement will now allow some of his critics to refocus on the
   schools themselves, starting with the Referendum.
   The timing is good for Mack as well, judging by his letter. The salad
   days of expansion and seemingly endless money are over. A new hard
   reality is setting in, and the next three years will be very demanding
   of the new Superintendent.
   I believe that Stan Mack's dedication to the District is beyond
   question, even when we disagree. His stepping down is further evidence
   of that dedication.

References

   1. http://rdale.org/modules/cms/pages.phtml?pageid=74817