Mayor Walsh announces School Committee reappointments, but critics say process is unfair

Mayor Martin Walsh is reappointing two School Committee members whose terms were due to expire on Monday and critics say the nomination process is confusing, poorly publicized and lacks sufficient community input, further highlighting a need for an elected body.

Lorna Rivera, who was first appointed to School Committee last year after Miren Uriarte stepped down, and Alexandra Oliver-Davila, who was first appointed in 2016, are both being reappointed to the board, Walsh announced in a statement that was only released after the Herald asked about the appointments.

“I am proud to reappoint both Alexandra and Lorna to the Boston School Committee, both tremendous leaders who put the best interest of our students and schools first,” said Walsh. “I want to thank both of them for their dedicated service, and I look forward to our continued work as we ensure every single student in Boston can reach their full potential.”

The Citizens Nominating Panel, a 13-member group of parents, teachers and principals, solicits applications for vacant School Committee seats and hands off a list of 3-5 nominees to Walsh, who makes the final call.

The application period ran from Oct. 30 to Nov. 12 and eight people applied, including Oliver-Davila and Rivera, according to Laurie Ciardi, the mayor-appointed chair of the Citizens Nominating Panel.

Most of the applicants were interviewed in a public meeting on Nov. 18 and a list of four nominees, which included Oliver-Davila, Rivera, Tiye Naeemah Cort and Uzochi Erlingsson, was sent to Walsh two days later.

The list was never announced.

Lisa Green of the Boston Coalition for Education Equity said the selection process is a form of gate-keeping, which could be remedied by revisiting the idea of shifting to an elected School Committee. The appointed committee has been slammed as a rubber-stamp for the mayor, notoriously lacking in transparency during last year’s superintendent selection process.

“Having representation chosen for a community is not the same as having representation chosen by the community,” said Green. “It isn’t the same representation that an elected process would produce.”

City Councilor Annissa Essaibi-George, who has chaired the council’s education committee, said the nomination and application process is “difficult to understand.”

“Having a more transparent and more clearly articulated process for that nominating panel would be very helpful and it would go a long way to create some better support,” said Essaibi-George.

Travis Marshall, a member of Quality Education for Every Student and parent of two Boston Public Schools students, said there was no communication about the nominees to parents.

“If you’re having an all-appointed School Committee, the very least you can do is solicit … ideas or opinions on those nominated,” said Marshall.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/2QiQZ6r