Blischke, Jessica
Talega parent calls ABC committee members' experience "tragic" and "an injustice"; process criticized as unproductive and mismanaged by district
Jan 08, 2008
Jessica Blischke, Sun Post
News “It came down to the
fact that these poor people had to sit there for
hours and listen to these irate citizens. It was
tragic to realize this poor committee did not want
to be there. It was truly an injustice, not only
to the people who had to sit on the committee, but
to everyone who sat there until the bitter end.”
The committee is down to 17 members (from 24) , and the members who resigned said the process was unproductive and being poorly managed by the district. Former committee members say they are frustrated by the way their hands are tied. Given the district’s framework and deadline for finding a solution, there is no way to make a recommendation without upsetting parents, they say. Committee members and parents reported that the contentious six-hour meeting dissolved into personal attacks, name-calling and a lack of order, with one father refusing to yield the podium after his three-minute maximum time and one committee member quitting on the spot. Blischke, 34, of Talega, has a 3-year-old who would be affected by a boundary change.
The committee is down to 17 members (from 24) , and the members who resigned said the process was unproductive and being poorly managed by the district. Former committee members say they are frustrated by the way their hands are tied. Given the district’s framework and deadline for finding a solution, there is no way to make a recommendation without upsetting parents, they say. Committee members and parents reported that the contentious six-hour meeting dissolved into personal attacks, name-calling and a lack of order, with one father refusing to yield the podium after his three-minute maximum time and one committee member quitting on the spot. Blischke, 34, of Talega, has a 3-year-old who would be affected by a boundary change.