Expansion of School Advisory Councils: Popular idea, but devil is in the details
by thenotebook on Sep 04 2012 Posted in Latest news
By Paul Jablow
For supporters of extending School Advisory Councils (SAC) to all schools in the District - and there is virtually no outspoken opposition to this - the devil is in the details.
A coalition of community groups formally requested a School Reform Commission resolution mandating this in July. And speakers at the August SRC meeting kept up the pressure for the body to go on record in favor of extending the concept from its present 38 schools to every school in the District.
But as the school year gets underway, District officials say that thin staffing due to budget cuts could make moving ahead difficult.
SRC Chair Pedro Ramos voiced general support for the SAC concept at the August meeting but was noncommittal about when a resolution might be introduced. District spokesperson Fernando Gallard later said that Ramos was unavailable to discuss the subject.
Speaking glowingly about what the SAC has accomplished at Jackson Elementary School, Adriana Arvizo, parent organizer at JUNTOS, told the SRC in August, "We want to see the same results we saw in Jackson in every school in the city."