The candidates for Covington school board appeared on stage together for the final time before November 6’s election. With nine people, it’s the most crowded – and possibly the most competitive – race on the ballot. Eight of them appeared at the American Legion Hall in Latonia for the forum moderated by former City Manager Jay Fossett, now a partner with local lobbying/public relations firm Strategic Advisers.Â
One week earlier, all nine candidates debated the issues facing the Covington Independent Public Schools at a forum hosted by OASIS, Inc at the Ninth Street Baptist Church where they were seated alphabetically. At the Latonia event, the issues that separate one half of the candidates from the other half were symbolically displayed by the open seating with the three candidates endorsed by the Covington Education Association (Joyce Baker, Kerry Holleran, and incumbent Glenda Huff) on one side and the three candidates whose campaigns have been closely associated with each other and who have been the more vocal critics of the current administration (Everett Dameron, Tom Miller, and Jo Rogers) on the other. Candidate Christi Blair and incumbent Mike Fitzgerald sat on the ends of the table. A ninth candidate, Rebecca Pettigrew, did not attend.
The nine candidates are vying for three open seats on the 5-member board.
Themes that have been consistent through the sometimes contentious campaign emerged once again Thursday night. The first question involved the first thing each would like to change in the district if elected. Blair reiterated her call for improved communication so that more parents understand what is going on in the schools and with the district’s budget. Miller wants to go over the budget with a fine-toothed comb and evaluate the current programs in place. Dameron wants to put in place better control of the expenses and direct more money to the classrooms. Rogers would aim to ensure that all the students are reading on grade level by the third grade. Baker would push for more communication with the people in the city who may not have a child in the system but should still know what is going on. Holleran wants to see more parents involved in the schools’ site-based decision making councils. Huff brought a flier she printed out with what she called the facts facing the district to counter what she implied to be mistruths spoken of at the previous debate. Fitzgerald wants to see more discipline to help children overcome what he described as violent neighborhoods.
A real difference between the two halves of candidates emerged in a question about the effect transient students may have on the district’s notoriously low test scores. Baker, Holleran, Huff, and Fiztgerald acknowledged that the district’s reportedly high transient population is an issue. “A lot of students come from Cincinnati, Campbell County, and all over the Tri-State area,” Fitzgerald said, “and depending on when students come in, they do have an effect on our test scores but we do everything we can to make sure they are working at every level of the rest of the students.”
Baker and Holleran each spoke of programs in place to address the transient population and to make sure the children are given extra attention to catch up if necessary.
Huff described scenarios in which the district  is faced with students who may attend for two weeks, move away, and then return. She also spoke of the district’s high percentage of defined homeless students, which according to the state, is the highest in Kentucky. “We have a lot of kids who may be sleeping on benches and we have to make sure they are safe and educated,” Huff said.
At the other end of the table, Blair wasn’t buying it. “This is one of those questions that annoys me,” Blair said. “First of all, I would like people to define transient. Does that mean if I transfer here from New York that I’m a transient? If I come here from Lexington, Kentucky in the middle of the year, am I a transient? If Covington schools have some of the lowest test scores in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, you would think that transients would raise that instead of contributing to the problem. …I live in the urban core. I see homeless people. I do not see infants and children that go to Covington schools laying on benches. …I think this is a myth, an urban legend.”
Rogers said that transient students are not unique to Covington and that she dealt with the issue effectively as a teacher in Bellevue. She suggested an admissions test for new students so that they could placed in appropriate classes. “Now we can deal with these children as individuals and not as transients and find the right place for them to be educated,” Rogers said.
Miller and Dameron agreed with Rogers’s suggestion.
There was also disagreement on whether the district puts enough money into the classroom and whether there are too many administrators compared to the number of teachers. “I see a different world than what that question presumes,” said Holleran. She pointed out that in her experience as a mother of a student at John G. Carlisle, instructional assistants were added because there was extra money from the site-based decision making council. She also claimed that the schools have smart boards in the classrooms that rival the equipment at Cincinnati State or Northern Kentucky University.
“I’m baffled by that question as well,” Huff said. “If you’re in our schools, participate in our schools, you will see our children are getting what they need.”
Baker said that the central office has made cuts recently and that teachers are getting support from their supervisors, principals, and the central office. Baker retired from the district after thirty-six years as a teacher and administrator. “Some of our teachers are getting way more professional development than is required,” Baker said. “A lot of our teachers are really prepared and if they do wind up going to other districts, they are very highly qualified.”
Fiztgerald also suggested that money is getting into the classrooms.Â
Rogers, Dameron, and Miller have made “getting more money into the classrooms” a cornerstone of their individual campaigns. “Unfortunately, it’s not the role of a board member to actually say where every penny is going to go,” Rogers said. She also pointed out that Holmes High School’s site-based decision making council, a governing body made up of faculty and parents, is only working in an advisory capacity and not in its offical capacity, something she wants fixed.
Dameron said that the board does not hire and fire anyone other than the superintendent and that the number of administrators is a superintendent’s issue. He said, however, that the issue does fall under the board setting the standards.
“This is not a function of the board,” Miller said. “I think the board does have the right to look at various things going on and question if the superintendent has made the kind of decision that has to be made in creating this position and also, is the money being spent wisely? Could it be directed better towards classroom learning?”
Blair criticized what she said was a high number of psychologists and counselors in the schools. She would rather see those funds go toward art and music instruction. “I think you should have one psychologist per school,” Blair said.
On the question of whether any combination of the candidates could work together effectively in spite of their differences, all the candidates had some various way of saying, “yes”.
The school board candidates also appeared at an OASIS debate (Reports from that event are here: Part One & Part Two). The school board candidates were interviewed by RCN earlier in October as well (For that report click here).
PHOTO: School board candidates debate in Latonia