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School Board Member Explains Travel

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 2, 2008

The intent of this letter is not to justify the expenses of board travel, but to share some of the benefits brought to our district from outside sources. Our community is very rich and diverse and faces many different needs that are only common to large school districts with a combination of urban, suburban, and rural areas.

One program brought to our district is the dual-language program at Alexander Elementary. It works by teaching students content in their native language, while at the same time teaching them English. Because of this program, the school grade at Alexander went from a D to an A in one school year and has been maintained ever since. This is just one example of curriculum I have learned from elsewhere and brought back to this district.

District 1 has the oldest inventory of schools in the county, and I have focused my attention on improving those facilities so the students, staff, and surrounding neighborhoods can have a sense of pride in their school. I feel that I have given my district the attention is lacked for far too long.

In these conferences I have learned how to navigate bureaucratic administrations to effectively fight to improve our long-neglected facilities. Because of what I have learned and my natural ability to fight for what is right, the halls of Chamberlain High school no longer smell like sewage. Baseball and softball players can now have home games at night because they finally have lighting for the field after 50 years of students having to leave school early for games, and the dugout at Leto High is no longer rat infested and falling in on itself. We have also made improvements to several cafeterias that were unhealthy, outdated and did not provide a comfortable work environment.

We have come a long way, but there is still work to be done. I love my district, and in these financially hard days I am only going to have to fight harder to make sure my community gets the attention it deserves. The same attention more affluent areas of town have never had to fight for.

All answers to our problems cannot be found in Hillsborough County or on the Internet. I take every opportunity I can to educate myself on all matters concerning education because I take my duty as an elected school board member very seriously. Although the statute states this is a part-time job I work 60-70 hours a week without fail. I am consistently at events in the community and visit schools to speak with parents, staff, and students in order to understand the daily challenges they face to make good policy decisions.

The writer is a member of the Hillsborough County School Board, District 1.

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