Holding New School Board Accountable: Equity for Evans High School

Let’s be clear about the facts-

Fact #1: Potential. I know our students at Evans. I admire and respect them. They are just as capable of success as any students in Orange County. They don’t need sympathy or charity. They need empowerment. They need the same kind of educational experience and opportunities they would have at any other high school. That is how they will be prepared for our diverse, competitive and complex world. Maintain those high expectations. Help them realize their potential.

Truth #2: Prejudice. Mayor Crotty and Commissioners Brummer, Stewart and Fernandez bowed to the politics of prejudice when they denied Superintendent Blocker’s plan, approved by the former school board, and supported by Principal Christiansen, teachers, families and community leaders, to rebuild Evans quickly and equitably on and next to its freshman campus. It was to be completed by this next school year. How unfortunate that adult agendas won out over children’s best interests. These elected officials used false and distorted arguments, did not follow their own comprehensive plan, and took our community back at least fifty years. It was an injustice. It was discrimination.

Now that this reality has forced Evans to be rebuilt on its main campus, it is the responsibility of many, but especially the school board, to do everything possible to remove the stubborn stigma of that location. A large burden of proof now rests on new school board members who agreed with the mayor and those county commissioners. You now should ask yourself as plans proceed, would I send my child to Evans? All board members need to ask themselves that. I used to. I know others did. It’s always the ultimate test.

Truth #3: Community Problems. Many are grateful to Sen. Sipliin, Commissioners Segal and Moore Russell, Chairman Cadle, Sheriff Demings, and the superintendent, Reverend Bracy, Police Chief Demings and others, for starting a dialogue to address the serious problems that plague Pine Hills and contribute so heavily to the stigma that Evans endures. But, it’s only a beginning. It can’t be window dressing and it must show measurable results.

Truth #4- Equity and students. New plans must provide the same conditions for success that the rejected plan did. It means an equitable facility built as quickly as possible. But this requires much more than bricks and mortar. It requires continued commitment and support for: rigorous advanced studies, including the newly accredited IB and fledgling Global Technologies programs, high-quality administrators, teachers and staff, and the same opportunities in the arts, sports and extra-curricular activities available in any Orange County high school. Only this will build the foundation and framework for success that can bring back families, attract a diverse enrollment, retain strong administrators, teachers and staff, and establish a vibrant culture of achievement.

Truth #5 - Equity and unitary status. This commitment to all levels of education may help achieve unitary status, but it has clearly been jeopardized by these politics of prejudice and by the fact that elected officials will still bow to them and force policies that can reinforce the marginalization, i.e. segregation, of schoolchildren and threaten the school board’s and superintendent’s ability to fulfill their constitutional and statutory responsibilities to serve all students fully and equitably.

Truth #6- Burden of proof. I’m not alone in trying to see this end as a new beginning, and it’s clear that it will take the work of many within and outside Evans. I include myself in that work as a continuing supporter of Evans. Success can be reached, but, make no mistake, the stakes are bigger, the bar is higher, and the burden of proof is greater. Many are waiting to see the school board, specifically new members, reject the ugly politics that got us here and show that you understand your primary responsibility is to provide a full and equitable education for all students, regardless of skin color, native language, family income or zip code. Putting children’s best interests above adult agendas. In all times, but especially in these dire economic times, we can expect nothing less.



Address by Anne Geiger to OCPS School Board on issue of Evans High School
February 24, 2008

New Post on Sentinel School Zone Blog- February 13, 2009

It is clear that an on-line petition and other actions are in order to send a message to the new school board that the current schedule as approved by the former school board should remain in place. This start-time flip was designed as an operational efficiency, and has proven to be one in its execution. (It is also important that any academic benefits, as experienced in other school districts in the nation, are measured and reported.) Those who voted for it on the former school board, and those on the new school board who voted to maintain it, understood and respected this reasoning.

School boards' fiduciary responsibilities are serious and critical in all times, but especially now in this volatile economy with deep budget cuts expected for the foreseeable future.

While we should all be aggressive in asking our Governor and state legislators to reform Florida's tax structure to provide adequate funding for basic services, including public education, we should also aggressively demand that our school board members, all of them, fulfill their fiduciary responsibilities to maintain the fiscal integrity of our public school system, with or without Tallahassee having the political courage to enact meaningful tax reform. That means supporting all operational efficiencies that ensure maximum protection of our classrooms where teachers teach and children learn.

And while it is helpful to have committees to gather input, ultimately it is the school board's job to make responsible and rational decisions, not emotional or parochial ones, to benefit student achievement, the mission and bottom line of our public schools.

I felt this strongly while serving as a school board member, and I feel it just as strongly now as a citizen, taxpayer and parent.

Anne Geiger, OCPS School Board (2004-08)