Board split not liberal vs. conservative

Despite common characterizations of Madison’s school board as split along liberal and conservative lines, it just ain’t so.

The seven members of the board of education have to be among the most liberal people in Madison. I’d guess that all seven voted for John Kerry in the last presidential election, and they’ll all probably vote for the Democratic candidate in the next presidential election, no matter who the candidate might be.

The true fault line runs between a group determined to defend the status quo and a group whose few members ask whether the board and district could be better.

The status quo defenders say things like “Madison is the best school district in the nation” and “We follow the best possible decision-making processes. No change could make any improvement.”

By contrast, the questioners raise queries like “How can equity be improved in the district?” and “How can we make decisions on budget cuts before we’ve seen the budget?”

Forget liberal vs. conservative. Think in terms of status quo vs. improvement.

Ed Blume

Posted by Ed Blume at April 28, 2005 7:18 AM
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