Historical Summer 1993 article. Dates, prices, services and contacts describe the source period; current availability has not been established.
(Rick Bender recently ran for a position on the St. Louis City School Board and was elected.
The Times talked with him recently about his view of his new position. Q: Rick, why did you run for the St. Louis Board of Education? A: I ran because people are ready for change in education. Nationwide. it’s a national phenomena.
I feel that I have the knowledge and the experience to fill the needs of this position. Q: What do you hope to accomplish during your six years? A: First, it will take less time than that (I hope).
The following are my goals: 1) Have a personnel analysis done of 911 Locust.
This will show us which jobs are necessary and which ones aren’t, as well as who are meeting their responsibilities and who are not. 2) Establish democratic site-based management.
This means putting the authority where the responsibility is. Since the principals. teachers and parents have responsibility. they need the authority.
This also means that there will be a greater emphasis on services to the schools and a lesser emphasis on directions to the schools from downtown. 3) Improve relations between the Board and its teachers.
This will mean more citywide coalitions with business and community groups. 4) Create two new alternative schools for “at-risk” students, one middle school and one high school. Q: Since you’ve been to several Board meetings by now, what’s your opinion of what’s going on? A: I’ve been attending these Board meetings since 1991. So.
I sec that the dissension that was present is now gone.
There seems to be a real coming together of the Board. Q: How do you hope to influence the • Board? A: This goes hack to the reason I ran. 1 have both the knowledge and the experience. Them is now a whole new commince system that was started by the old Board members. And it will go into effect, hopefully, at the June Board meeting.
This new committee system will be organized according to Board needs and will not be shadows of the administrative structures. (Meetings are open to the public and are held the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month during the school year.
During summer months, meetings are irregular—usually once a month. Q: The Board is planning on developing large middle schools. Many recent studies on education say middle schools should be small and personal. What is your opinion on this? A: I think middle schools should be small and personal.
I taught in junior high for 7 or 8 years.
It was small and personal.
I attended a huge junior high and did not know more than two dozen students in the whole school. Q: Rick. is there anything else you would like to add? A: I hope we can get out from under the desegregation order by 1995.
I am willing to work hard to accomplish this.
Original photograph caption
Rick Bender, newly elected School Board member. Photographer not credited.
Originally published in The Times of Skinker-DeBaliviere, Summer 1993.
Read this article in the original newspaper issue.
Original source: SD_Times1993_06.pdf, printed page(s) 1; PDF page(s) 1.
