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May 2. 2007
Page A3
1 IJnrtüuth (iDhsmu'v
Passionate Fight for School Board Seat
Candidates at odds on Jefferson
by R aymond R endi . eman
P ortland O bserver
Portland School Board members
d o n 't get paid a cent for sitting
through endless m eetings. But with
a school board election and Super­
intendent Vicki P hillips’ departure
in store, the board is poised to
decide how to spend the taxpayer's
m onies and choose the person who
will lead the district into the future.
Tw o candidates for Zone-2, rep­
resenting parts o f north, northeast
and southeast Portland, are locked
in one o f the hottest battles on the
May 15 ballot.
T h e c h a lle n g e r is M ic h e le
Schultz, a social w orker and devel­
opm ent consultant who wants to
use the change o f superintendents
to m ove away from w hat she calls a
crisis-oriented board.
"B uilding com m unity connec­
tions is what we need to focus on
for the hiring process,” Schultz said.
The incum bent D avid W ynde, a
US Bank com m unity-relations vice
president, says the bo ard 's focus
on financial stability and closing a
group o f sm aller schools has al­
lowed the district to restore pro­
gram s in other schools.
W ynde asserts that the current
board has "found a strong superin­
tendent and I am confident that we
can find another."
He said changes over the last
four years have resulted in "the
best Portland Public Schools we
have had in a long tim e.”
Schultz disagrees. She cites per­
sistent failures in many local schools
se rv in g m in o rity stu d e n ts and
thinks "the board needs to take
m ore responsibility for their role in
these issues.”
O nly with a “ bottom -up ap ­
proach" can m inority voices be
heard in such a way that avoids a
com m unication disconnect and re­
pealing unsuccessful changes, she
said.
"T here was sort o f a process in
term s o f the re-re-re-re-configura­
tion o f Jefferson," she says, "but
there were many fam ilies and staff
who were against the academ y ap­
proach, so w e’ve clearly got a top-
dow n district."
H er a c c u s a tio n s h a v e p u t
W ynde on the defensive.
"I have faith in the plan th at’s in
place for Jefferson," he says. "There
are a lot o f people in that com m u­
nity who, through our efforts, are
becom ing reengaged."
Citing her experience in crisis
m anagem ent, Schultz criticizes the
process for hiring adm inistrators at
Jefferson High School, w hich is
now on its eighth principal in 10
years.
"W hen you do the sam e things
o v e r an d o v e r a g a in ,
fications for represent­
clearly there’s a cycle hap­
ing minority voters in the
p e n in g ,
an d
o n ly
Jefferson cluster.
Je ffe rso n 's parents and
“I’m a w hite w om an
staff know w ho can re­
who grew up in M aine,"
verse that cycle.”
she says. "But the key to
W y n d e s a y s th a t
representation is to know
Jefferson's interim princi­
that and to really listen
pal C ynthia Harris "will
to w hat everyone has to
p ro v id e the le ad e rsh ip
say."
necessary for a smooth
Empowering voices is
transition.”
a key aspect o f listening
A nother difference be­
for Schultz because "if
Michele Schultz
tw e e n th e c a n d id a te s David Wynde
y ou ' re a fam i ly that can ’ t
em erges from their views
afford electronic com m u­
on the u n iq u e elec tio n o f the she would represent her zone if nication, y o u 're left out o f the loop
b o ard 's seven m em bers, with each elected to the board, but acknow l­ in many w ays." She pledges to do
residing in different neighborhood edges that she has no special q u ali­ anything in her pow er to "m ake
zones but elected by all o f the
district's voters.
W ynde says the system was
designed to prevent five or six board
m em bers from living in the same
neighborhood, like Irvington, while
making them accountable to repre­
sent the entire school district.
Schultz, on the other hand, said
sure every BPS fam ily has Internet
access" if elected to the board.
W ynde cites the b o ard 's cre­
ative use o f Title I funds to restore
full-day kindergarten and secure
better stu d e n t-tea ch e r ratios in
struggling schools, saying, "w e
have to rem ain vigilant in making
sure low -incom e students are be­
ing served.”
Ruth A dkins an d incum bent
D oug M organ are ru n n in g in the
only o th er co n tested school board
ra c e , r e p r e s e n tin g s o u th w e s t
Portland. T w o other board incum ­
bents. B obbie Regan and D ilafruz
W illia m s , a re ru n n in g u n o p ­
p o se d .
Superintendent Search Begins
P o r tl a n d P u b lic
c o m e a g a p in
S chools are in search
a c h ie v e m e n t b e ­
f o r a new su p e rin te n ­
tw een m in o rity and
dent afte r last w e e k 's
n o n - m in o r ity s tu ­
s u rp ris e a n n o u n c e ­
d en ts. But ac tio n s
m ent on the u p co m ­
to clo se sch o o ls in
ing d ep a rtu re o f S u ­
the w ake o f cu ts to
p e r in te n d e n t V ick i
s ta te
e d u c a tio n
Phillips.
sp en d in g and a re ­
Phillips is leaving
d esig n o f Je fferso n
the district June 30 to
High School in north
b e c o m e d ire c to r o f
P o r tl a n d
a ls o
education for the Bill Vicki Phillips
b ro u g h t c o n tro ­
and M e lin d a G a te s
v ersy .
Foundation.
Her proposals to close down
D uring her th ree y ea r tenure eight neighborhood schools, most
at P ortland. P h illip s has w orked in north and northeast Portland,
to increase test sco res and o v e r­ drew heated protests.
Alberta Mob Tied to Drunkenness
Total chaos mixed with alcohol
and police to create a mob scene on
N ortheast I8th and A lberta Street
T hursday.
T h e d is tu rb a n c e b ro k e o u t
around 10 pm during Last T hurs­
day. an art event held each month
along Alberta, when an officer tried
to arrest Ryan H artm an-Parsons a
22-year-old who was allegedly in
the midst o f a fist fight.
Police said they tasered Hartman-
Parsons when he disobeyed orders
to stop the fight. W hen one officer
ran back to his car to get cover and
another placed his taser on the
ground to arrest H artm an-Parsons,
another man identified as Joshua
H annum , 30, picked up the weapon.
Police said sparks Hew again
when Hannum com plied with the
officer to drop the taser, but the
crow d began to throw bottles and
scream at police. As the mob grew,
the intersection o f 24th and A lberta
was blocked off. People also tried
to ju m p on cars, police said.
Sgt. Brian Schm autz, a Police
Bureau spokesm an, said that some
o f the people involved in the distur­
bance had too much to drink and
others seem ed to be the anarchist
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