Wynn Hausser for School Board

Maintain open lines of communication, gather regular input on community priorities, and provide clear information to parents and residents.
Build positive relationships with my fellow board members, district leaders and staff.

Our processes should be open and transparent - which means providing the information people want, when they need it, in a form that is convenient. In part, this means reaching currently underserved audiences in nontraditional ways.

To understand the concerns and desires of students, parents and the community, PAUSD should conduct yearly surveys and focus groups. Parents should also have a way to give anonymous feedback about teachers as part of a comprehensive evaluation process in a way that is not destructive to teachers.

We must do a better job publicizing vital data about our schools, such as the School Accountability Report Cards (SARCs). Every school should be required to use the data systems we currently have in the district, and we should lobby for a state data collection system to help parents and community members make informed decisions.

Having multiple mechanisms for open communication between board, superintendent, district staff, and local school management is also essential. We should hold focused annual retreats for goal and priority-setting, and quarterly closed session meetings between the board and superintendent. We should incorporate the concept of 360° feedback to gain a variety of inputs on the superintendent's performance, including from local school management. Holding more study sessions on key issues will help us gain in-depth and shared understanding.

Facilities

The current state of our facilities is not consistent with our reputation as an outstanding school district. Our infrastructure is not adequate to support the district's educational mission. Due to our growing population, many schools have been forced to add temporary "portable" buildings to cope – and what were intended to be temporary fixes have become a permanent part of may of our school campuses.

We must have a forward-thinking, District-wide, comprehensive facilities plan that reflects plans for growth, not just maintenance. It should flow from a clear vision for what kind of school environments we want to have, and how the physical plant can best support that vision.

We need to clearly identify where there is room for expansion and where adding second and third stories to buildings is feasible. The plan must clearly show how adding school capacity will affect car, bike and pedestrian traffic, and be vetted with local residents. We also should be environmentally conscientious by considering energy-saving practices such as adding solar panels to school buildings. Internal space should include flexible and technology-ready learning environments wherever possible.

Unfortunately, the facilities master plan scheduled to be completed last year still does not paint a full picture or have priorities identified, in large part because the board was so distracted with less important debates. Completing this plan must be one of our highest priorities.

The district is currently considering placing a bond measure on the June 2008 ballot to fund new and improved facilities. There are a variety of compelling reasons for strongly considering that date. However, I am currently highly skeptical that we will have a concrete, well thought out plan in that timeframe. It will be difficult for me to support going to voters until I am satisfied that we have a sound, well-define plan, our priorities are clear, and that we are being as efficient as possible with the public's dollars.

Strategic Plan

In 2004, PAUSD revised its previous strategic plan, extending it to this year. The planning process is now scheduled to begin in Spring 2008.

A good strategic plan is a road map guiding the district's direction for the next several years. It is a statement of what we intend to do, and by implication, what we will NOT do. It should establish clear goals and priorities, include specific and measurable objectives, and identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats that need to be addressed. A strong strategic plan is a living document that is relevant to the day-to-day operations of the district. For this to happen, every board member must commit to it. In recent months, some board members seem to think they can adhere to the plan when convenient but ignore it when they choose. The district cannot be successful if this is the case.

The public should be provided an opportunity to comment on any proposed plan. In the past, public views and expressed priorities have not always been seriously considered. We need to convince them that we are listening to and care about what they have to say.

Specifically, there are two things we must keep in mind as we move forward in this process. First, our plan must confront the issue of rising enrollment. Second, we should not promise more than we can deliver.

ADDITIONAL DISTRICT FOCUS FOR 2007-08

Enrollment Growth Planning

This will be one of the most challenging issues the board faces in the coming years. Here are some thoughts on how we should address it.

Make sure demographic projections reflect both current reality and what we know is going to change. For example, the Stanford West development is not a typical example of Palo Alto housing because the population it was built for does not have the usual number of families with children. So it should not be considered when devising an average number of children expected in any new housing development.
Start the process now of taking back the Garland site. When PAUSD enrollment dropped during the 1970s and 1980s, the district sold off a number of school properties, but kept others and leased them to private schools and organizations. The leased properties can be reclaimed to meet enrollment needs, as was done with Terman Middle School in 2001. While we need to take into consideration the loss of income and the costs of reopening any of these sites as a district school, with enrollment rising, it seems clear that we will need additional space to house students. The Garland site (next to Jordan) appears to be the best option. As this process will take three years, it needs to begin now, giving us time to figure out the best way to allocate the space.
Consider a variety of alternatives to addressing enrollment projections. We need to look at class and school size, schools within schools, reconfiguring grade and choice program groupings, redrawing boundaries, lengthening the school day and a variety of facility options. We also need to consider what voters have approved in the past as well as current community sentiment. Ultimately, we need to maintain as much flexibility in facilities and programs as possible so we can address the needs of today without tying our hands for the future.

Foreign Language in Elementary Schools (FLES)
In today’s world, facility in multiple languages has taken on new importance. One of the failings of my own education is the fact that I don't speak a second language. We also know from a development perspective that the earlier a child is exposed to language, the easier it will be to learn later on.

We need to look at how best to introduce elementary school language programs in a cost-effective way without detracting from core academics. This is not an all or nothing proposition. An incremental approach might be best. We need to gather teacher and administrator input on what is possible in both the short and long term. Whenever we make a programmatic decision like this, we must also ask ourselves: "what are we not going to do?".

High School Task Force (HSTF)

The HSTF was originally charged with looking at meeting the unmet program and facilities needs of high school students. The task force asked that the facilities charge be removed from its purview because it lacked the expertise to deal with the complexity those issues bring. With its new, narrower focus on program minus facilities, this task force will be more effective than previously charged. It also deals with reality: regardless of where we go with high school expansion in the future, programmatic solutions can be implemented more quickly than bricks and mortar.

For the HSTF to succeed, it will require significant participation by students and parents. Ideally, the task force would conclude its report before facilities plans to support the program findings are finalized. I'm not sure this will be possible, which is one reason I am concerned about the timetable for the contemplated bond measure.

Food Services Monitoring

My memory of school food is probably a lot like yours – YUCK! But in this day and age, we should be able to provide students with good tasting, nutritious food in a cost-effective way. It is difficult for me to understand why this continues to be such a thorn in the district's side. This is an area in which it makes sense to consider best practices of other districts. Where else do they have a successful food service program? I will look into this issue further as the campaign continues.

ADDITIONAL PRIORITIES

Social, Emotional and Mental Health

Our kids face a much more complicated world than we even imagined when we were their age, and it is taking its toll. We have an obesity epidemic. Teen suicide is on the rise. Bay Area parents identify stress to be their number one concern for their children's health. Alcohol and drug abuse, and premarital sex are showing up in younger age groups. PAUSD is not immune from these problems. Rather, some would say we are a community in denial.

We should not underestimate the role that social and emotional health has on a child’s ability to learn, a teacher’s ability to teach and the classroom environment. This is well-documented, However, currently there is no organized district wide-health education program. Our current system tries to address this issue in a piecemeal way. The Board should make health, and in particular mental health, a priority and ensure the District takes a comprehensive approach to this issue including school-based programs, system and policy development and school personnel education and training.

We have a vehicle to address these issues in the School Health Council. We should support their work and make sure it gets implemented. In particular, the Board should support the implementation of the Health Education Content Standards for California Public Schools K-12 currently being reviewed at the state level, and the Department of Education's Youth Suicide-Prevention Guidelines for California Schools. District staff should also identify and recommend new curriculum in this area.

There are several other ways we can make this a priority:

Identify and acknowledge problems and get them out in the open. There is still a stigma attached to these issues. We need ways to provide early help and support. The only way to do that is to make it OK to admit there is a problem. Professional counselors and experts, as well as trained peer counselors, can make it easier to find someone to turn to.
Leverage state and private support. We should be identifying best practices and funding opportunities and aggressively go after them. For example, there is grant money in the pipeline for a K-12 mental health program that we should begin planning for now.
Address practices that increase stress. We should carefully examine whether school start times, homework practices, and other demands are worth the tradeoffs of our district’s health and be ready to revise them as necessary.
Pay special attention to working families, those with low incomes, and English learners who face greater levels of stress and anxiety.

There is a lot of effort throughout California and the country to improve the social and emotional health of our students. We should be at the forefront.

Without backing from the School Board all the best intentions will go no where. PAUSD is focused on high academic achievement. Without being provided the tools for social and emotional development our academic achievement goals cannot be met. It is as simple as that.

Finances

Governor Schwarzenegger has declared 2008 to be the Year of Education Reform. A critical piece of this involves school finance, following on the publication of the 22 Getting Down to Facts studies published by Stanford last spring. The key message in those studies: it will require BOTH more money and a much more efficient system to achieve the dramatic improvement our state's education system needs. We need to be proactive in anticipating this statewide discussion and look locally at our own efficiency and accountability for how district funds are spent.

The Board has a responsibility to demonstrate to the public that their money is being well spent and that we have strong oversight mechanisms in place. Before going out to raise more bond money, we need to make sure we can prove that we’ve done all we can do to keep costs down and getting maximum bang for the buck. We also need to consider the total debt burden taxpayers are willing to pay given other city bond measures on the horizon and be strategic about the timing for bond measure and parcel tax requests.

In addition, it is important that we use the budget as a planning document. We need to understand the “total cost of ownership” of choice and special programs. The budget should reflect our strategic priorities. This means making tough choices about what we will spend money on and what we will no longer fund.

OTHER THOUGHTS

Leadership and Vision

I stress the word UNIFIED in Palo Alto Unified School District. Board members need to take into account what is best for all students, not just a chosen few. They need to be able to stand up to vocal minorities and special interests for the good of the district. They need to be willing to make tough decisions and stick by them. They need to listen carefully then set clear direction for the superintendent and staff.

My vision for PAUSD is that we are always as good as we think we are – that we are in reality what our reputation suggests. Palo Alto should be one of the outstanding districts in the country. United, we can all make sure it stays that way.

Mandarin Immersion (MI) Debate

I was opposed to this program when the board considered (and reconsidered) it last spring for process reasons, not because I think the program is without value. But I think it is time to move beyond "pro" and "anti " positions. We've already been distracted too long by this issue to the detriment of other priorities. The decision on MI has been made and, at this point, I do not support revisiting it. We need to focus on implementation and evaluation.

At the same time, I do believe there were serious flaws in the decision-making process on MI. See below to learn more about how I will approach the decision-making process as a board member.

Decision-making

To maintain credibility, it is vital that the board have a clear and transparent decision-making process. I will work diligently to restore accountability, transparency, and effective decision-making to the board.

Here are the questions I will consider when looking at new programs or evaluating existing ones:

Where does the program fit within our strategic goals and priorities? We can do almost anything, but we can’t do everything. The purpose of a strategic plan is to provide a framework for deciding what we will and won’t do. If a program doesn’t fit our strategic priorities, it needs to be set aside, or else the strategic priorities need to be revised. Revising the strategic plan mid-stream should only be done under a significant change in circumstances, and with appropriate public input. But a strategic plan should be a roadmap, not a straightjacket, so there are times when it should be revisited. See Strategic Plan section for further discussion.
Is there an existing district-wide policy in place under which the program fits? If not, the policy discussion and decision should come before the programmatic one. One of the board's primary jobs is to focus on policy, and leave implementation decisions to the superintendent and the appropriate level of staff, administration, or teachers. Policy decisions should be based on what is best for all students across the district.
How does the program compare with existing or competing programs? How great is the need or demand? What are the cost, space and curriculum implications? Are there particular federal, state or foundation funding opportunities or other factors that should be taken into account when comparing programs?

You may disagree with me on individual issues. But you will always know how I will approach a decision, what it is and why I made it. And I expect, and am willing, to be held accountable for the decisions I make.