News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Christine Jones will serve this year as chair of the Sisters School Board.
Jones was named to the post in a unanimous vote during the board's July 1 meeting. She takes the post at a critical time for the district, as stagnant enrollment and a softening economy pinch budgets and Sisters voters decide whether to support a renewal of a "local option" tax to support the schools (see related story, page 22).
Ensuring the passage of the local option tax, which provides a vital $1 million per year to the district, is a top priority for Jones. However, it is only part of a broader goal.
"I think the most important (goal) is to do what I can to support the superintendent and district in raising student achievement," Jones told The Nugget.
While Jones thinks Sisters schools deserve their strong reputation, she believes Sisters still has a ways to go. She would like to see Sisters close the gap with top-performing schools. Sisters lags 10 to 15 percent behind the top-tier schools in state assessment scores.
Would Jones like to see Sisters match the caliber of school districts like, say, Lake Oswego?
"Yeah, I would," she said. "I don't see why we can't. It's not going to happen overnight, but (schools superintendent Elaine Drakulich) has the educational knowledge she needs to move the school district in that direction and we have the staff to implement it."
Jones sees the school board's role as setting clear goals and supporting Drakulich in defining and implementing well-researched "best practices" across the educational spectrum. The board, Jones said, will have to make careful use of data to make sure limited resources are allocated most effectively.
One key to improvement is identifying students who are lagging as early as possible so that intervention can come when it is most effective - in the early grades.
Jones also recognizes that Sisters schools have been criticized for inadequately serving high-achieving students in its TAG (Talented and Gifted) program. Jones does not believe the district can or should focus on one end of the bell curve at the expense of the other and she does not think that TAG students will be left hanging by a focus on shoring up those who are struggling.
"I strongly suspect that the perception that it is a zero-sum game with struggling students is not borne out by educational research," she told The Nugget. "A system that can figure out how to address the needs of struggling students is also one that is well-equipped to meet the needs of the high achieving students as well. Great teachers in systems that focus on high achievement all around can do both, I think."
While education is the purpose of the schools and Jones' primary focus, she recognizes that the district also faces challenges on the legal, political and economic fronts.
The district has been hit with lawsuits over executive session protocols (that one settled by an agreement to record executive sessions) and over its issuance of $2.1 million in "Full Faith & Credit Obligations" (still pending). It has also weathered controversies over public involvement and dissent.
"I would hope we're coming to an end to all that, but issues will continue to arise," Jones said. "All we can do is operate in as open, transparent and ethical a manner as possible and continue to deal with issues as they arise."
Jones is clear that the public is welcome to weigh in on the issues that affect the school district.
"I don't think dissent is unhealthy at all," she said. "The issue is, how do you have civil discourse, because people will always disagree."
Jones said she wants the public to feel that the board is accessible and hears their concerns.
"I would like .... to promote some kind of board 'listening initiative,'" she said. "Perhaps we need to make ourselves available, for example, at parent teacher conferences..."
Jones, who built a career at the World Bank, brings considerable financial experience and expertise to bear on the district's finances. She sees clouds on the horizon, but perhaps not a damaging storm - as long as local option passes.
"Without that, we would take many, many steps backward as a district," she said.
With enrollment growth stalled, the district will not get new resources, which are allocated on a weighted per-student basis by the state. However, it appears that schools won't be facing cuts in state funding.
So, Jones believes, it may be very difficult to add new programs, but Sisters schools can probably weather the current slowdown without making painful cuts - as long as the staff and the board keep a close eye on the financial ball.
"Elaine has shown that she can manage the budget tightly," Jones said. "I do lie awake at night sometimes wondering how we can manage all this, but with careful management, we can do it without distress."
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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