By Ken Browning
Electrifying to witness the students' Ask2Know Kids' Forum at the Fine Arts Theatre of West Los Angeles College last night.
Refreshing to hear the usual questions for School Board candidates:
• The sordid state of water fountains and bathrooms,
• Bond vs. parcel tax funding to fix them,
• The expected questions
• The forgotten questions – what pizza did order? Quality of food. Transgender bathroom use.
Raising and teaching kids reminds us of the newness of the great things we enjoy, and the desperation we feel when they do not measure up.
My daughter reminded me the other day of how we communicate something as basic as conversation in the English language. When one person does all the talking or speaks to a group, we still call it monologue. When two or more people actually exchange ideas, we call that dialogue.
At School Board election time, candidates rally to state their case.
Who did this? Who failed to do that? Who twisted the truth about the other? Who blocked whom from doing that dadblamed thang? Who managed to get around the blockage to get that dadblamed thang anyway?
It is useful for me to be reminded when I consider how and how muchwe raise to fix all the deferred and outdated items at the schools, of teachable moments and lesson plans around the dinner table, on the playing fields, swimming pool and in the classroom.
When a lesson does not stick or plain falls flat, you do not stand up in class or at the dinner table and whine until you finally get your way.
You go back to the drawing board. You press on, more prepared to present your case next time.
We still will be working on facilities in the months and years ahead.
Let's work together. Make sure we are not leaving something at the door, in the coat check, under the table or on the carpet.
Let's speak with measured tones, words and manner.
We do not have to resort to partisan gridlock, as in Sacramento or Washington.
As a father who appeared at the School Board and City Council starting 10 years back in support of the two dual language immersion and swimming programs, I am proud to see Spanish and Japanese immersion advancing through the high school grades with my daughter's class.
I am proud to see PV solar “ready to go.” It is depressing is to see the prospect of fewer lanes, winning coaches' dreams deferred, and an aquatics program left out in the cold.
Back to that image of the drawing board.
Can we stop whining in the Board room, and get on with a balanced program of funding improvements that includes not just better air, water and food, but better science, physical education and arts programs?
Maybe we can start with closer guaranteed indoor lanes for the swimmers, and a marching band that actually gets to march in formation on game night.
Karlo Silbiger, Robert Zirgulis and – will see to it. Ask the others. Then vote next Tuesday.
Mr. Browning may be contacted at libracaribe@earthlink.net
