By Rev. Dr. Steve Bland, Jr.
The choices we make today will determine the choices that become available to us tomorrow. We are again faced in this upcoming election on Nov. 8th with critical choices. While I am concerned about the outcomes from voting in the partisan elections and the proposals as well, I am even more concerned about the choices we will make concerning who will govern policies protecting our most precious asset: Our Children! Therefore, it is imperative that we make the right choices for the DPSCD School Board.
I have taken the opportunity to host or attend forums to hear the plethora of candidates that are currently running. On the one hand, I am pleased to see this amount of interest in this most significant election. On the other hand, I am somewhat concerned as to the outcome if the right mix of candidates do not ascend at this juncture of history. This is somewhat like prescribing and taking medicine; the wrong diagnosis and dosage can be fatal! I believe all the candidates I have heard are passionate about their varied concerns. However, the question is who will be the right mix at this critical juncture of our history that sets personal agendas aside and secures the needs of children locally and ultimately globally. We need persons who will understand what their role is vs. what it is not! There must be a focus on policy vs. politics!
One of the most important decisions a School Board makes is the selection of the Superintendent. The Detroit Public School Community District (DPSCD) Board was then elected and empowered for the first time in over two decades to remedy the devastation left from the hard task masters of Emergency Management that left us with low vision, low morale, and little to no resources. It was their assignment then to select a visionary leader with strong educational and administrative credentials so we could shift to a focus on education and preparing students to excel. They chose Dr. Nikolai Vitti: who was then a two-time finalist for National Urban Superintendent of the Year while then serving in Jacksonville, FL.
He has recently been named the 2022 Green-Garner Large Urban School District Superintendent of the Year! While some are casting doubt now based on certain decisions they may not agree with, I believe the Board selected the right Superintendent and he should be given an opportunity to complete the vision he has casted. He has provided visionary, sustained, experienced, and compassionate leadership that has led the District to experience improvement in student enrollment, achievement, finances, staffing, climate and culture, student safety, and morale. One of the concerns I have heard regards non-local administrative hires he made during the early years of his tenure, but none of the concerns rise to the level of replacing him at this crucial time, particularly as we overcome challenges brought on by COVID. Therefore, I believe voting for candidates with this primary agenda will do far more harm than good! …not to mention buying out contracts, developing/implementing a search process, which costs time & money!
The role of the School Board is to focus on governance through policy, community engagement, and establishing the right systems and processes for accountability through monitoring and metrics. We need candidates that once elected, will not be disrupted by the politics of the status quo and opportunism. It is easy for School Boards to attempt to micro-manage the District directly, air out differences publicly before seeking direct, personal resolve, badger vs. encourage personnel, and hold all the above accountable.
The past two School Boards overall has been primarily focused on their role in improving DPSCD. This upcoming November election provides an opportunity for four (4) seats to be filled. The District needs stability as well as progressive ideas which requires a team. Therefore, after careful observation, I am choosing to support four candidates I believed are best positioned to achieve these outcomes as a team: President Angelique Peterson-Mayberry, Dr. Iris Taylor, Latrice McClendon and Bishop Corletta Vaughn.
I and several other Community leaders personally endorse these candidates because they represent a diversity in experiences and skill sets that will continue to effectively problem solve and hold Dr. Vitti accountable. They also have access to resources and relationships to help bolster support. Their backgrounds represent excellence and proven School Board experience, government, faith based, labor, business, medical, and philanthropy. Without question, other candidates do as well, but these I believe will work as a team. We need more than just people who are passionate, but are compassionate about strategically advancing our children, partnering with our total community, and executing both short- and long-term goals. Frankly, we need School Board members that have capacity, audacity, and continuity!
The familiar saying as cited in the lyrics of a renown song: “I believe the children are our future…” I believe that beyond being our future, they are our present responsibility! The sacrificial nurturing of our seeds of today will determine the quality of our trees and fruit in the days to come! Choose for Children!
“Choose Children” Op-Ed by Rev. Dr. Steve Bland, Jr.
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