Superintendent Hinojosa exceeds his authority

Friday, April 23, 2010

Superintendent Hinojosa exceeds his authority

Superintendent Hinojosa has no authority to commit Dallas ISD to any initiative - public or private - without specific prior Board approval.

We have seen this before.

On last night we discussed a contract that had been signed and commitments made without Board approval.

We saw this earlier with an item being slipped onto the agenda without knowledge or approval of the Board or the President.

There is a clear pattern ignoring and disregarding the proper oversight authority of the Board.

Only the Dallas ISD Board has the authority to determine appropriate policy changes or initiatives of the District. The Superintendent's duty is to follow and uphold Board approved decisions.

The Superintendent does not decide when or if charter school partnerships will be expanded in Dallas ISD. Only the Board can make that decision.

The Board has not approved any such initiative to partner with West Dallas charter schools as apparently announced by the Superintendent on Thursday morning. Without such official Board approval of such partnerships the Superintendent is again violating the established policies and procedures of the district.

The Superintendent is to recommend - only the Board approves.

What will the Board do about this?

We need a special meeting of the Board to discuss this latest inappropriate action by the Superintendent and determine what action - if any - needs to be taken.

The Superintendent has again exceeded his authority.

A Teacher's Creed

"In the classroom on the first day of a new school year, I am eager to meet my students. I have rehearsed my greeting and first day’s remarks, but no matter how many years I’ve prepared for this procedure, it’s always new. My heart pumps a bit harder, faster; I feel adrenaline like an athlete, or like an actor, or maybe like a novice public speaker. It’s a marvelous feeling, this first day, because I know that something special is going to happen, and I know it because I’ve experienced it before and I know that I will experience it every time I meet a new class throughout my venerable career. And then they’re seated before me and I smile at this special feeling. This is an assembly of students, yes. But there’s so much more, because each of these young persons is more than just a student entrusted to me. Each of these students has a story to tell, a lifetime, however brief, of experiences, a history in volumes whose richness and depth I can barely begin to fathom. And so as I absorb the first glimpse of these young charges, I must appreciate the extent of my responsibility, of the privilege I’ve accepted in presenting these young souls my special knowledge. In offering them my talent and passion, I am adding an enormous array of new bright stars to the vast firmament of their minds, stars that will never have time to fade in their lifetimes. I will be part of their story. And I know that each of them will always be part of mine. And that’s a good feeling, a feeling that is perpetually renewed, revisited, and rewritten in A Teacher’s Creed."

Carla Ranger - Dallas ISD Education Blog

Friday, April 23, 2010

Superintendent Hinojosa exceeds his authority

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