Ann Arbor teacher: Let's invite the business community into our schools
I think Albert Berriz is a good man.
If he says his recent leadership of the opposition to the countywide schools funding millage was not about the increase in taxes that would have been assessed on McKinley properties, but instead about genuine concerns about the way our schools are currently managed and about the state’s mechanisms for funding, then I take him at his word.
Albert Berriz
I believe Mr. Berriz does have the best interests of young people in mind because I saw him work hard to spearhead a capital campaign to raise $4 million plus so the Neutral Zone could buy a new building and expand services for teenagers. He didn’t have to do expend his time and energy to do that. Somebody who doesn’t care about providing important and positive experiences for the young people in our community wouldn’t have made that kind of effort.
I’ve met Albert Berriz. I like Albert Berriz. While we may disagree politically on some issues, I suspect we could have vibrant and civil debates about our views and we would each walk away with our minds newly opened and our perspectives changed by the other.
In a recent article on Annarbor.com, Mr. Berriz was quoted as saying he’d offered to convene a group of local business leaders, a Blue Ribbon panel, to meet with AAPS district officials and school board members to talk about ways in which they could lend their expertise to helping the district out of its present financial plight.
According to Mr. Berriz, "We have some of the brightest financial minds in the Midwest right here in the Ann Arbor region, and I am certain that if I called them personally, we could assemble a formidable group that would be willing to advise you as to best practices and creative ways to address your current budget crisis. It is my recommendation that this process go on concurrent with the public input process that you intend to start in January.
“I believe the business community is very interested in helping you, and this assistance could be of significant value to you and your team in the upcoming budget discussions you will be having with the entire community.”
I urge the AAPS administration and school board to take Mr. Berriz up on his proposal.
He’s right, the business community here does include wonderfully bright minds. AAPS would be foolish to ignore such an offer to help.
Of course, I’m assuming whatever consulting services the business community would offer would be pro bono. Clearly, the district can’t afford to take on additional costs at this point.
Further, one of the core philosophies Mr. Berriz advocates for is more transparency on the part of the district. That strikes me as a fair request. It seems obvious that the best decisions can only be made based on full understanding of all the issues and their numerous and complex components. The more information gleaned and processed, the better the ultimate plan. With that principle in mind, I’d also like to recommend a few other ways for business leaders to gain access to what’s happening in our schools.
First, it’d be great for the business leaders to actually attend some classes. I’d say about a month’s worth, at all levels: elementary, middle, high school. Not just the so-called star teachers either. Or the signature elite-level classes. I’d like them to sit in on classes with struggling teachers too, with first-year teachers and with veterans, in AP classes and in classes with students who read below grade levels. Doing so, I think, would allow the leaders to gain a full extent of the challenges teachers face and would also allow them to more fairly evaluate where they think good work is being done and where, perhaps, improvement can be focused. I have always believed my classroom, indeed any classroom, should be open to the public at any time. I am not ashamed of the work I do, indeed I’m proud of it, and I believe most of my colleagues feel the same. We would welcome your scrutiny.
That said, teachers are not the only employees in the district. Let’s also allow the business leaders to spend time shadowing the administrators, custodians, secretaries, bus-drivers, cafeteria workers and all other support professionals whose services many people are advocating be cut or trimmed through consolidation or privatization. Let’s remember these folks are members of our community too, with families to support, income to spend and taxes to pay. If they truly are inefficient in their performance, then, okay, changes need to be made, but let’s make sure those changes are based on the fullest kind of transparency possible. Let’s let the business leaders get to know all these folks who work in the schools and get a glimpse into what their lives are like before they start advocating cutting jobs, health plans, salary and retirement benefits.
Last, I’d also like the business leaders to take a go at the standardized tests our students are compelled to take. Seriously. And not to embarrass anybody either. It’s fine for the results to be anonymous. I just think we need to have appropriate metrics by which to evaluate student progress. If we’re going to talk about test scores being relevant to how we evaluate how are schools are doing, we need to know if those scores mean anything. Granted, I’m sure the business leaders will have forgotten much of what they once knew back in school, but that forgetting begs the question - if they don’t need the skills the tests measure in order to currently lead their businesses, then why do we put so much value on them? A lot of money and resources go to preparing for and administering those tests. Having business leaders take them would surely give us more transparency in terms of whether those expenditures are worthwhile.
Once the business leaders have a fuller and clearer picture of what’s happening in our schools, I’d like to offer a couple other ideas as we sit down at our meetings. First, after we’ve come to some consensus as to future visions and strategies - and, believe me, I really would like to hear what an informed business community has to say, I do value the experience and expertise of successful business leaders - I’d hope they’d lend their voices to any effort to urge the state legislature to reconfigure how our schools get funded. I believe with the influence of business leaders added to that of the teacher’s unions, we’d really get some work done in Lansing. Why should these two groups be at odds with each other? We all want what’s best for our children and the broader community. Let’s work together, establish common cause and then go bust some serious legislative tail.
Finally, and this may be a fantasy, but Mr. Berriz says a personal call from him would bring these talented business leaders to the table and I saw him raise significant dollars for the Neutral Zone, so I believe he’s capable of a heckuva lot. What I’d really like to see is a group of influential business leaders help Ann Arbor become the greenest school district on the planet. I suspect we spend a lot of money on inefficient energy use and if we could afford the capital lay-out to greenify our buildings and buses we could save a lot of money long-term. Plus we could help our environment and set an example for other districts.
What if business leaders helped AAPS become the signature showcase green school district in the world?
What if they used their influence to get every start-up environmental business to donate their services and products so we could generate crazy publicity and become a model for architects and builders and decision-makers the world all over and show everybody what green can really look like on an institutional basis?
It’d be free advertising for these companies and a tax write-off, so who knows, maybe they’d go for it.
Think of the possibilities.
Solar panels powering all our buildings. Sustainable materials used to build all new facilities and to renovate old ones. Fuel-efficient lighting, water, and heating and cooling systems. Hybrid or electric buses. Technology that would allow us almost completely to eliminate using paper.
Think of the jobs we could create in our region.
Think what a formidable team we’d be if the local business community really went all in and used its influence to invest in our schools. I’m not talking about a few meetings. I’m talking about a full innovative partnership. I’m talking about schools so transparent, their insulated and energy-efficient windows are made from recycled glass.
I’m talking about a community, from all sides, that quits bickering and get to work.
Jeff Kass teaches Creative Writing at Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor and at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, and directs the Literary Arts Programs at the Neutral Zone, including the VOLUME Youth Poetry Project, which meets every Thursday night at 7pm. He will post new blog entries every Tuesday and Thursday morning throughout the school year.
Comments
Steve Norton, MIPFS
Sun, Dec 20, 2009 : 3:44 p.m.
@Smiley, Hmm. That's the problem with the analogy: school finances are NOT like business or family finances. Do you expect your income, and therefore the quality of the food and clothes you can provide to your children, to be determined by all your neighbors? Does a business do well because people as a group decide to give them more or less money? But that's exactly how schools work. All of us as voters get to decide how much schools have to spend (by choosing how taxes work) and to decide how it is spent (through elected school boards). The wrinkle in Michigan is that the first part happens at the state level, while the second is the responsibility of local communities. That is, we in Ann Arbor (or Chelsea or any other district) have to decide how we want to educate our kids, but how much we have to pay for it is decided by the state legislature. So one of our problems is that the representatives of the people (legislature) who decide what our schools get are not in the line of fire when it comes to making do with less - other representatives (local school boards) have that duty. But the other problem is that school funding doesn't "just happen." It is a direct consequence of how we choose to set up taxes. And the system we have now has been reducing the share given to schools, in both good times and bad. The problem is much bigger than this latest economic downturn. Whether we realize it or not, we the voters have chosen a system that has slowly starved our schools, and will continue to do so long after any economic "recovery" comes along. Maybe it's time for us all to choose to move in a different direction?
Smiley
Sat, Dec 19, 2009 : 6:29 p.m.
@ Dr. I. Emsayin Come on, the kids are the customers in your analogy, not the employees. In the business world, you can't fail your customers very longer either. I think a stronger way to distinguish would be explain that schools necessitate a certain level of love and caring that tends to be woefully absent in business, but that doesn't mean the finance issues aren't the same, they are...just like they are the same in every household. If you spend more than you take in, you will fail.
AMOC
Fri, Dec 18, 2009 : 9:06 a.m.
Mr. Kass - If either AAPS or Albert Berriz actually does convene a panel of volunteer local experts to address school district BUSINESS practices as was suggested, I'll be there with bells on. And I am happy to put my portfolio of Continuous Process Improvement projects (and standardized test scores!) up for public review to be allowed to serve. But how is having various business leaders spending a month in AAPS classrooms going to help them understand how best to configure the district's support of those classrooms? That portion of your proposal is profoundly wasteful of everybody's time and deeply disrespectful of the students whose classes would be disrupted by the presence of outsiders. Probably better to videotape teachers at the various grade levels, as is commonly done already for national teacher certification and certain graduate school classes. This would allow the business leaders to review classroom events and practices across a variety of levels and teachers, without constraining them to the limits of the school schedule. Indeed, posting videos of every teacher in every classroom on each schools' web site (or on YouTube), so that community members, parents and prospective students could view them might be an excellent and inexpensive way to implement the "individualized education plan for all students" goal of the district's Strategic Plan. This would give actual data (and not just PTO meeting hearsay) with which to match teaching and learning styles to maximize the learning in each classroom. Further, Skyline HS was presented to the community as among the greenest school buildings now standing. Auditing their current energy usage and applying the lessons learned from that effort to AAPS's other buildings would be an ideal project for community members to attack. Ann Arbor is home to a number of nationally-recognized experts in the "green" energy field, and certainly some of them could be persuaded to volunteer. My understanding is that several of the state-of-the-art energy management systems at Skyline were turned off or overridden because staff members did not like or did not want to learn to use their programmable features, leading to some higher-than-budgeted energy costs. If true, this practice wastes the roughly 15-25% premium the district paid to construct Skyline using bond money, and wastes operating funds as well. Issues of this sort, not classroom practice, are what a group of community business leaders can and should be invited to address.
a2flow
Thu, Dec 17, 2009 : 5:40 p.m.
@Longfellow... Interesting about ancient Greece. I had never heard such interesting information before. Where did you find it? I quickly googled and found this... http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/608117/strange_and_obscure_facts_about_teachers.html An excerpt from it... 2. In ancient Greece teachers were paid higher wages than skilled craftsman. They received gifts from citizens also. The highest paid teachers in Greece were music teachers. 3. The teachers in ancient Rome were by and large Greek teachers who were slaves. The teachers had little incentive. Moral suffered and the quality of education in the Roman Empire became a story of gradual decline. The were eventually qualified, licensed, and paid by the state. The quality of public education got even worse. Please send a link to your most valuable information sir.
Bill Wilson
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 10:50 p.m.
"I am soooo excited! I have been going to the dentist AND the doctor for forty or so years...who knew I could BE a dentist or a doctor because I've been such a loyal patient! Forget this teaching gig..." I think I hit this point, but pehaps you missed it: the nurse spending hours around the doctor may not be qualified to treat, but he/she would be a viable source of information. One of the most advanced cultures our world has ever known was ancient Greece. Interestingly enough, the lowest job in the city...if you could do nothing else, was to teach the children. Again...need I connect the dots?
eom
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 10:35 p.m.
@longfellow I am soooo excited! I have been going to the dentist AND the doctor for forty or so years...who knew I could BE a dentist or a doctor because I've been such a loyal patient! Forget this teaching gig...
Bill Wilson
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 10:31 p.m.
"I'm not sure that taking airplane trips as a child and adolescent qualifies me to be a pilot. I experience the result, not all the training, preparation and experience that brings it about." Steve, You're moving the goalposts. Let's review the good doctor's claim: "Most business leaders, and most everyone who defeated the millage have no idea how much energy it takes to educate 160 high school and middle school students a day, or 27 elementary students." Having "no idea" is quite different from being qualified for the job, eh? But, let's apply your analogy to the field of aviation: Someone spending a mere hour or two on a plane might not be that knowledgeable about the aviation industry.But flight attendants and other support workers who spend many hours on a daily basis working in and around the field would be a viable source of information. Dollars to doughnuts, our business leaders spent quite a few hours in grade school classrooms. Need I connect the dots for you? Mr. Kass is a creative writing school teacher who cannot write. Perhaps his efforts would be better served learning how.
Steve Norton, MIPFS
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 6:15 p.m.
@Longfellow, I'm not sure that taking airplane trips as a child and adolescent qualifies me to be a pilot. I experience the result, not all the training, preparation and experience that brings it about. Mr. Berriz's offer to organize a "blue ribbon" panel seems rooted in the idea he advanced during the millage campaign: that there were easy solutions to the financial crisis, which could all be found by increasing efficiency in administration (and, he even advanced at one point, without even touching teacher salary). I think that is very unlikely, and would probably not survive a real examination of what our schools do and how they work. That's why it's important for the "experts" who offer help to our schools to really understand what schools do and how they work before offering advice. Or, we could follow the lead of some well-known private firms - for example, one that hired the CEO of a home-improvement store chain to lead a large automotive manufacturer. That worked really well for Chrysler,.... right?
Bill Wilson
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 2:40 p.m.
"Most business leaders, and most everyone who defeated the millage have no idea how much energy it takes to educate 160 high school and middle school students a day, or 27 elementary students." After a minimum of 10-12 years in grade schools themselves, business leaders have no idea what it takes to educate 160 students? Are you jesting? This comment would be laughable, were it not so absurd. "Unlike Mr. Beritz (who takes his commands from the ultra conservatives, if we believe the post), Mr. Kass speaks for himself and from his heart. I have seen the work he does with young people at the Neutral Zone, and it is hard to imagine that he teaches all day long in addition to his evenings and weekends being taken up at the Neutral Zone. The busy business people who don't have time to sit in a classroom shouldn't have time to criticize what goes on there either." I believe it's "Mr. Berriz," not "Beritz." As to your allegation that " who (Berriz) takes his commands from the ultra conservatives," so what? Your comments serve only to reveal your own bias.
Dr. I. Emsayin
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 12:51 p.m.
Most business leaders, and most everyone who defeated the millage have no idea how much energy it takes to educate 160 high school and middle school students a day, or 27 elementary students. Imagine a classroom of mixed ability levels, six almost consecutive hours of teaching specified content and making sure it is geared toward state standards and that everyone is being successful. Unlike the business world where if someone can't do the job they are fired, students are not fired, so teachers have to work with the hand they are dealt. Mr. Kass may have some tongue in cheek remarks, particularly about testing, but he is opening an invitation to bring innovation into the school system. Unlike Mr. Beritz (who takes his commands from the ultra conservatives, if we believe the post), Mr. Kass speaks for himself and from his heart. I have seen the work he does with young people at the Neutral Zone, and it is hard to imagine that he teaches all day long in addition to his evenings and weekends being taken up at the Neutral Zone. The busy business people who don't have time to sit in a classroom shouldn't have time to criticize what goes on there either.
Bill Wilson
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 12:28 p.m.
"School districts and their special abilities to tax exist in the US because, in the lack of a nationwide structure for education, counties pioneers and leaders established them and paid for this crucial service." Actually, the taxpayers paid for these schools, and we taxpayers (including Mr. Berriz) continue to pay for them. Hence, Mr. Kass is working for us: he's an employee, and based on his assertions, a confused employee, at best: Mr. Kass: "Last, Id also like the business leaders to take a go at the standardized tests our students are compelled to take. Seriously. And not to embarrass anybody either. Its fine for the results to be anonymous. I just think we need to have appropriate metrics by which to evaluate student progress. If were going to talk about test scores being relevant to how we evaluate how are schools are doing, we need to know if those scores mean anything. Granted, Im sure the business leaders will have forgotten much of what they once knew back in school, but that forgetting begs the question - if they dont need the skills the tests measure in order to currently lead their businesses, then why do we put so much value on them? A lot of money and resources go to preparing for and administering those tests. Having business leaders take them would surely give us more transparency in terms of whether those expenditures are worthwhile." Note: he begins this convolution with "last", yet two paragraphs below in his letter, we're treated a paragraph that begins with "finally." Of course, "finally" has no more meaning than "last," as Kass goes on rambling for eight more paragraphs. This guy teaches creative writing? The notion that our business leaders would not fare well on a standardized high school test is absurd and insulting, and especially so coming from an employee. There seems to be a real disconnect between educators like Mr. Kass and reality: when employees speak in this manner to their employers in the real world, they're usually fired. Perhaps this distinction isn't lost on all of academia, hence the true reason Mr. Berriz is being welcomed like ants at a picnic.
Steve Norton, MIPFS
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 12:03 p.m.
I think this proposal makes a lot of sense, and I thank Jeff Kass for coming forward with it. I think the point of the article is that anyone who wants to make suggestions for running our schools better needs to understand how they really work, and not just go full steam ahead based on "conventional wisdom." Any business consultant needs to "know the market," and any blue-ribbon panel made of private sector leaders would need to get fully up to speed on how the schools work and the environment they must face before offering any suggestions. To those commentators who have said AAPS (or any other district) is just one big business, that simply is not the case. Our schools are not the same as private sector enterprises, and the differences are important and substantial. Their overriding goals are not to meet financial targets but to provide the best education possible to students given certain resources. We the people decide how many resources we want to commit to the education of our children. Schools lack many of the options private firms have, including changing the quality of their product, pricing their product or service, lowering production, and so on. Schools must always try to provide the best education possible, they cannot charge students for their education, and they must educate every student who lives in the district, no matter what circumstances may make it difficult for that child to learn. Basically, private firms adjust their operations because their revenues are driven by the demand for their product. Less demand requires less production. In contrast, demand for a good education has never been higher, and most of our local schools have roughly the same number of students (or in come cases many more) as they did ten years ago - Ypsilanti and Willow Run being the two exceptions. We need to keep all these aspects in mind before we look to outside financial experts to "solve" our problems for us. The real choices, how much to spend and on what services, belong to us, the voters of the community.
Alan Benard
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 9:44 a.m.
Business people who care about the sustainability of their local economy would already be ethically and personally engaged in the public school system as it is the single most important civic structure protecting property values and attracting intelligent people to an area. School districts and their special abilities to tax exist in the US because, in the lack of a nationwide structure for education, counties pioneers and leaders established them and paid for this crucial service. Only in the United States does this local control of education dominate, and it is one of the bulwarks of democracy. Albert Berriz and those who -- misguidedly or not -- conspire with him to treat AAPS as a cost center to be diminished or eliminated (at the behest of his corporate and political masters) behave destructively and against our common best interests. If the business community which falls in line behind Berriz gave a damn about public education, they would be in the schools daily and sitting on the school board.
Ed Kimball
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 9:01 a.m.
Mr. Kass, overall that was a great article. I disagree with Longfellow; just as you take Mr. Berriz's suggestions at face value, I take your compliments of him at face value. I am surprised, however, to see a creative writing teacher combine two only marginally-related ideas in one article. The first is getting business persons to help our schools. The second is to make the schools more "green". While I favor making the schools more green, introducing that idea weakens the story overall. Let's focus on improving the education provided by our schools. The only environmental idea related to that is improving efficiency, as that would save money that could be used for purposes directly related to education. Save the rest of the green ideas for another story, another day.
Diagenes
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 8:38 a.m.
It would be a great opportunity to get a new prospective on managing a 185 million dollar operation. The biggest obsticle is that the school system is highly regulated by the state and federal government as well as designed for the benefit of the teachers and administrators. To make meaningful changes would take a complete review and power to make structural changes. No group of volunteers have that kind of time and energy.
stunhsif
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 6:38 a.m.
Jeff, some good ideas, especially having actual business people who know how to budget money come in for free and help. You lost me though when you started talking solar panels and not using toilet paper. We live in Michigan Jeff, it is cloudy here 69% of the time.
yohan
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 4:05 a.m.
Do you want your child(ren) educated the same way McKinley runs their apartment buildings? I didn't think so.
Snarf Oscar Boondoggle
Wed, Dec 16, 2009 : 3:28 a.m.
I believe the business community is very interested in helping you, and this assistance could be of significant value to you and your team in the upcoming budget discussions you will be having with the entire community. I urge the AAPS administration and school board to take Mr. Berriz up on his proposal. Hes right, the business community here does include wonderfully bright minds. AAPS would be foolish to ignore such an offer to help." this is too ratioanal and honest.. it;ll never happen, quite unfortunately. imnsho. administrator protection kills it instantly.
m macke
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 10:01 p.m.
This idea is not without precedent. In the mid 90's a Blue Ribbon panel made up of area business members, parents, and staff drew up a plan to re-open Lakewood Elementary. They looked at all facets including budget for the building, construction to bring the building back online, staffing, and ways to fund some one time cost items such as enough books to start a library. The insight from local business leaders was very valuable. As for making the schools more energy efficient, and "greener", this could save money and set a good example for kids. Win-win.
Marvin Face
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 9:10 p.m.
I'm going to agree with Longfellow. Mr Kass back-handed his compliments throughout his diatribe. His bitterness is incredibly transparent. The business leaders could come in and help the financial situation of the District, Mr Kass, not improve the class instruction. They have precious little time to sit through weeks of classes and take your ridiculous tests. They would help streamline the districts finances, and while some of that may mean recommendations on energy efficiency, I doubt they would find the payback on solar panels and the like to be worth the capital costs.
Commoncents
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 8:47 p.m.
Great Article!!! I cannot wait to see how (if) this goes. Please keep us informed. I'm so interested, I'd actually like to attend in person if that was an option...
Bill Wilson
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 8:33 p.m.
Mr. Kass, Frankly sir, I think it's you that we need to test. There was enough hot air in your piece to fill a room full of balloons. The notion that the movers & shakers in our society are somehow lacking in intelligence is comical. This nonsense could find a voice only in academia: those in the real world would find it difficult to rise from the floor, such would be the level of their laughter.
DonB
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 7:35 p.m.
Wow. Thanks a lot Jeff. Why don't we just have McKinley run our public schools. "Arm-chair Superintendent" Mr. Berriz should have been happy enough with his victory defeating the millage and protecting McKinley's profits and kept his mouth shut. But to suggest he, or any other business people - the great minds of finance in Ann Arbor - know anything about educating human beings and running a school system is hubris at its worst. Jeff, did you know that Albert Berriz takes orders directly from his boss, McKinley founder, ultra-conservative, anti-public school advocate, and GOP state chairman Ron Weiser? When he met with Mr. Berriz, Todd Roberts politely noted that Berriz brought absolutely no constructive ideas to the table on how to address the funding crisis facing our schools. None. No amount of school tours and job shadowing will change that.
Lynn Lumbard
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 6:25 p.m.
The AAPS is a business with a $185 million budget. I'm sure Mr. Berriz and some local MBA could make some useful suggestions on managing that amount of money. There aren't many (any?) business degrees over at Balas. I hope Mr. Berriz is serious about this and that the School Board and AAPS Administration will take advantage of the offer.
nittanylion
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 5:20 p.m.
Thank you Mr. Kass for a thoughtful and well written article. I suspect Mr. Berriz is sincere in his offer and our school administration and board would be foolish not to follow up on this proposal and Mr. Berriz's promise. Our schools MUST start to make our educational offerings to our students much more challanging and also must reduce a significant amount of the overhead that is not related to the actual education of students.
Wendy Correll
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 5:17 p.m.
The idea of inviting the community in to the schools has arisen as a prospective fund raiser for the Ann Arbor Public Schools Educational Foundation. Other educational foundations across the country hold "Principal for a Day" events. We could make it "AAPS staff member for a day. Business leaders and citizens could participate in the program on one specific day during the year. They would shadow staff from the start of their work day to the end, and all meet at the end of the day to debrief - a "staff meeting" if you will. Contributions to the Educational Foundation are tax deductible. This might be a way to raise several thousand dollars for programs. Supt. - $5,000 Principal - $2,500 HS Teacher - $1,500 MS Teacher - $1,500 Elem Teacher - $1,500 Bus Driver - $1,000 Lunch Room Supv - $1,000 Office Staff - $1,000 Teaching Assistant - $1,000 Any one interested?
Smiley
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 4:15 p.m.
What a refreshing point of view. My favorite statement: "While we may disagree politically on some issues, I suspect we could have vibrant and civil debates about our views and we would each walk away with our minds newly opened and our perspectives changed by the other."
RuralMom
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 3:57 p.m.
This would be an awesome opportunity for AAPS. I hope someone out there brings this to fruition. The community has the resources just need to put pride aside and tap into them. GREAT article!
kmgeb2000
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 3:53 p.m.
Somehow I have doubts about his sincerity on the "was not about the increase in taxes". The article quoted Mr. Berriz as saying "We have some of the brightest financial minds in the Midwest", who frankly START with the money. They are less concerned about the widgets built or service offered than the bottom line, otherwise they wouldn't be the "financial minds". Yes, an over simplification but still a reality.
a2grateful
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 3:40 p.m.
Mr. Berriz is affiliated with McKinley Properties.. Nice article and ideas, Mr. Kass.
bigD
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 3:26 p.m.
Not sure what how this relates to Mckinley Prop.?
Wolverine3660
Tue, Dec 15, 2009 : 8:59 a.m.
we need to bicker less and co-operate more. I think that the extreme partisanship in politics, and the increasing polarization is not good for our government or our society,and al the institutions. Especially one of the most important, our Public Schools system. I hope the leaders of the Ann Arbor Public Schools take up Mr Berriz"s offer,and work to improve all aspects of he Ann Arbor School system Thanks for pointing this out, Jeff.