Nobody wants to be called a racist, and everybody walks on eggshells when discussing the current situation in the Allentown School District. The recent fad in urban education was that the person who the students see in leadership, should look like them, and that meant black or brown, but not white.
School Boards have hired Superintendents of color, who in turn hired principals of color. There has developed a large demand for a rather smaller pool of qualified candidates, who meet the color test. Here in Allentown, the superintendent we hired was actually paid off to leave a similar position in New England. We in turn have just suspended, with pay, a new principal at Harrison Morton, who kicked out the window in a police cruiser last weekend.
The core of school directors who adhered to the color test are not running for reelection. By good fortune, we have a pool of new candidates, who are very qualified to improve the district.
Truly, Allentown is in the educational dumps.
ReplyDeleteThe ASD has had this habit of hiring leaders that have been let go or asked to resign from other cities for a number of years. Although this has not been limited to the ASD, but also the city government. Several former police chiefs come to mind.
ReplyDeleteThere seems to be this thinking that Allentown needs to hire out of town "talent" to fill leadership positions, and a willingness to pay exhorbant salaries for that "talent". Apparantley there most not be capable people in Allentown to promote from within.
It seems that those who were unsuccessful elsewhere continue their track record of failure when they arrive in Allentown as well.