Call it the last frontier of accountability: a former Louisiana school board member is pushing an initiative to withhold the $800-per-month salaries of school board members who oversee parishes with failing schools. "The accountability system is looking hard at everybody - the children, the teachers. Let's put the school board members in that category," said John Crose, recently of the St. John the Baptist Parish School Board. Crose has his work cut out for him, as the state school boards association has already come out against his proposal. In 2002, there were 282 failing Louisiana schools in 68 school districts, which rather suggests that there is ample blame to go around. Even if school boards are obsolete [see http://www.edexcellence.net/gadfly/issue.cfm?issue=120#1505], so long as we're stuck with them how about a little accountability for their members?
"Plan would make tests high-stakes for boards," by Matthew Brown, New Orleans Times-Picayune, November 10, 2003
