About the Watchdog

Updated September 4, 2009 — added link to video.

Right now I think the Council Rock School Board is out of control.  The way certain things are being pushed through leads me to question some Board members’ concept of fairness and good governance.  I think it’s always the duty of the public to keep an eye on their government, to hold them accountable and aware that people are watching.

Here’s a video of one thing I heard at a School Board meeting which should concern the public. If Board members feel they may violate their rules with impunity, what message is that sending to the community?

Click the picture for a video to see what I mean.

I have been attending Council Rock School Board meetings for the past five years, and have tried to be a watchdog on issues that concern the public.  I have never had children in this School District, but as a taxpayer I think I can contribute on behalf of a lot of stakeholders.  When I see something being done that I think is improper, inappropriate or worse, I speak out (and not always quietly) at public comment during board meetings.

Before you get the impression that I hate kids and just don’t want to do anything for them, you may want to know that I have done thousands of hours of volunteer work for a local non-profit theatre group whose funds go toward scholarships for local students (mostly to seniors from Council Rock).  Largely as a result of my efforts to expand the theatre’s offerings, the group this year was able to give four-year awards for the first time in its history (after twenty-five years of giving one-year-only scholarships).

So I am not opposed to helping kids and their education.  I just believe that there is a proper amount of support that taxpayers should be obligated to fund.  If there’s a desire for more than the obligatory amount of programs, then someone else needs to step in and provide it .  For example, parents, PTOs, Booster Clubs, civic organizations and similar parties.  And in several cases at Council Rock I have seen groups such as the PTOs and Boosters do just that.

But it should be recognized that there are needs and then there are “nice-to-haves.”  Not everything that’s good for the kids is necessarily the requirement of the entire population to pay, no matter what the cost. I think it’s important that discussions of programs and projects should always consider whether it is justified to make all taxpayers pay or just the group(s) with the desire (and benefits) for those needs.

Some more background: I was a participant in Council Rock’s Strategic Plan development (and continue to attend meetings for its updates).  I was also chairman of Council Rock’s Act 1 Tax Study Commission to evaluate a rebalancing of the property/earned income tax mix for local revenue.