Below is a post from Danäe Gutierrez, home rule commissioner from District 8, on why she believes the Home Rule Commission should write a charter, and what recommendations she would make to such a draft. (The HRC is set to discuss this issue later this evening.)
Her post:
As a commissioner for District 8 of the Home Rule Commission for the Dallas Independent School District, I am recommending that we write a draft charter and I have included pieces to include in the draft.
Over the past six months, I have had the honor to serve the Dallas ISD students as one of the Home Rule Commissioners. During that time, I have listened to some constituents and some stakeholders who shared their opinions, experiences, and solutions for the Dallas Independent School District, especially as it pertains to an opportunity to revolutionize education for our children sooner rather than later. The purpose for writing a Home Rule charter draft and the recommendations that I have are purely based on my involvement and exposure granted to me through Home Rule Commission public meetings over the past six months, and my personal daily experiences as a Mom and volunteer in DISD.
When we started the public meetings, I expected to see 100 percent participation and standing room from a wide variety of stakeholders including teachers, principals, different DISD employees, parents, and taxpayers. I have attended every single meeting, and by the fourth meeting, the people attending and speaking were repeat participants. The steady attendees were from long-established special interest groups, their agents, former employees of the district and, of course, the Home Rule Commissioners. While I appreciate their attendance, I believe there was a lack of representation of stakeholders who are also directly affected daily and immersed in DISD operations and education. The sample of participants at the meetings was limited and repetitive, and, as such, did not fully represent nor give a fair voice in the Home Rule process. The budget allotted for the Home Rule Commission, along with the professional services that were provided should have been utilized in a more efficient and wide-ranging way to engage more DISD stakeholders, especially our parents. As a result, essentially, the same recommendations are being made repeatedly.
I feel blessed to have an opportunity to serve as a member of the Dallas Parent Advisory Committee, the District Wide Advisory Committee, a PREP DISD parent, the DISD Menu Advisory Committee, as a Board member on the Northwest Council of PTAs, on the Site Based Decision Making committee at Cigarroa Elementary School and Cary Middle School, as the PTSA President at Cigarroa Elementary School, a DISD volunteer, and a DISD graduate — which all have given me an additional chance to intentionally listen to a substantial number of diverse perspectives, opinions, problems, and solutions that DISD is facing at many different levels of its operations. It has been through these additional exchanges with “not so traditional” and less vocal stakeholders that I have been able to create a list of my own recommendations as a starting point for a Home Rule Charter draft.
- Restrict leveling, especially in the Improvement Required schools, with the logic that a larger class will not result in better academic performance.
- Solicit parent input before increasing class size and changing teachers during leveling and let them know that the child’s teachers will change due to leveling.
- Mandatory recess for all students. Many of our schools no longer give children recess because it cuts into instructional time. Taking away recess should not be used as a punishment, and discipline at every level should be communicated with the parent prior to implementation.
- Compulsory after school programs at each campus that are high quality and affordable if not free.
- Require Trustees to host one town hall community meeting per month at different schools in their districts.
- Ensure that each campus has a Community Liaison with a clear set of objectives and goals that are measurable and tied to compensation.
- DISD Teacher Grant Program to be use for instructional programs created by DISD teachers for school-wide use.
- Interpersonal skills training every year for all DISD employees.
I respectfully encourage my fellow Home Rule Commissioners to vote for writing a Home Rule charter draft next month, and I hope that they would allow the voters to guide us in the next steps for the betterment of the Dallas Independent School district. I look forward to further dialogue with all of the stakeholders, and my Home Rule Commission colleagues. I wish everyone in Dallas a joyous holiday season as we reflect on successes, and, accept our opportunities to improve, from our first semester of school.
Respectfully,
Danäe Gutierrez
Home Rule Commissioner
District 8
[email protected]
