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High-Flying Hillsborough Board Needs To Have Wings Clipped

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 19, 2008

It's been almost two years since the Hillsborough County School Board discussed the need for a travel policy, yet the board has failed to impose limits even as one roving member has continued to travel at will.

Board chairwoman Jennifer Faliero was right last week to call for a travel moratorium pending the creation of a budget and agreed-upon limits.

The board has had months to get its act together and hasn't. Instead, it has spent hours yammering about vision and sniping at each other, while neglecting its duty to be good stewards of public dollars. This year, the board spent nearly $38,800 traveling - about $27,000 of that out of state.

Holding first place in the excessive-travel category is board member Susan Valdes, who spent more than $10,500 on trips during the last school year - one trip a month save for December and May. She spent another $13,500 the year before.

Valdes initially explained her frequent trips on the need to become a "certified" board member - a nonsense designation advanced by the Florida School Boards Association. To get certified, politicians must attend distant training seminars that make money for the association. Recently, Valdes called the classes "indoctrination" and acknowledged the trips were a mistake.

While it seemed Valdes had learned her lesson, it's now clear she has not.

Valdes' travels continue to take her to Atlanta, Albuquerque, Nashville and Washington. She spent nearly a week at an Orlando conference at a cost of more than $2,100, when other board members spent only a fraction of that by going for just a few days.

Valdes defended her behavior after Tuesday's moratorium vote, saying some board members have "no clue" about what's going on in education because they don't travel. But she is sadly mistaken to think that board members can educate themselves only by leaving town. Haven't those conferences taught anything about distance learning?

Records show many trips are the result of board members serving on committees for national organizations. While there is value in professional associations, members should show a bias toward state organizations where travel costs are less. Regardless, they should set strict travel budgets and make smart choices to meet them.

No one expects school board members to operate in a vacuum, but taxpayers expect them to spend public dollars as though they were coming out of their own pockets.

In this economy, that means limited travel and only that which is absolutely necessary.

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