New bond, same old mistakes?

Image from Tame Impala’s Currents album. Article title based on track, New Person, Same Old Mistakes.

On first listen, SJ Unified's Measure R feels like it might be a fresh new way to advance our schools. But resident Christopher Webb, writing in a Merc op-ed, notes that the deeper we get into R, the more dissonant it gets. Webb has championed many school bonds over the years, only to be disappointed time and again by SJUSD's "toxic" mgmt and lack of governance accountability (and he's not alone).

San Jose Unified School District plans to place a bond measure on the November ballot. Despite having one child in SJUSD, my spouse teaching there and recognizing the need for additional funding, without prompt reforms, I’ll be voting no on the bond measure in November.

Since becoming a homeowner in SJUSD District 1 in 2013, there is nary an education bond measure I’ve not supported. My confidence in the district has been shattered. Reneging on a ratified raise for the teachers is outrageous. Their toxic, tyrannical, top-down management culture is driving away good teachers and families.

Rather than serving stakeholders, the board seems committed to covering for mismanagement and largely dismissing the stakeholders desperately seeking help. Accountability for mismanagement is overdue.

Christopher Webb

San Jose

Read the whole thing here.

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Related:

• Measure R: what it is, what it'll cost you, and why many San Joseans are concerned

• School board candidate: I'm a CEO; here's how SJ/SF districts can fix their fiscal disasters

• “Far from being wise”: San Jose Unified board candidates disagree on Measure R

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