Getting it Backwards (#1)

The Washington Post has a massive set of articles leading from the front page yesterday about conflicts of interest within the DC Public Charter School Board, and board members having interest, financial or otherwise, in the acquisition, construction, and financing of these schools. See "In One School Deal, Chairman Played Three Roles."

Thinking about the articles made me realize why I get so frustrated with the editorial page of the Washington Post, because I have this ideal belief that the editorial writers are influenced by the actual reportage of stories by Washington Post writers, reportage that appears in stories printed in the paper. (Of course, there is the issue of not reporting enough on issues that matter, but that's another issue.)

The Post runs this massive story, with 2.5 inside pages. Yet, the Post editorial page in the past has come out in favor of an appointed Charter School Board, which is an appointed, not an elected, board of directors. See "Attack on Charters."

In a democracy more democracy, more accountability, more checks and balances are in order. It's why by the way, that having restrictions on total Democratic Party control of DC government is a good thing, same with term limits, same with modifications to how government institutions are set up, because over the centuries(!) things change and new methods for creating additional checks and balances may be required--such as electing the Attorney General in DC and for the nation at large.

Bascially, the opportunity to create Public Charter Schools was mandated by Congress. There definitely was "complicity" on the part of some of our elected officials, because they felt that the city needed some quality schools in order to retain residents who were likely to leave the city in search of better schools, and because at the time the elected officials believed the school system was beyond fixing.

Myself, originally I was in favor of charter schools, because I too believed the traditional public schools were resistant to improvement, but now, with more of a "planner" mindset, I don't like the waste and lack of coordination that results from a hyper-fragmented "public" school "system" for one, and how Congress continues to "privilege" charter schools in ways that trump city and community planning processes, especially with regard to the use of publicly owned buildings. Not to mention that until recently, the Public School Charter Board hasn't required or developed adequate public participation processes that balance the privileges (treated as rights) to create schools with community concerns. And not to mention the reality that even though the schools are "public" and funded by city monies, the buildings are owned privately and there is not an ownership interest in the school facilities that is vested in the public. For many, the whole charter movement was just an opportunity to build, renovate, buy, and control property.

All of these problems are abetted by a lack of democracy, a lack of oversight, a lack of checks and balances. And I still have this ideal belief of the local newspaper as a crusader for good and positive and the public interest.

So why the hell is the Post so worked up about these conflicts as indicated in yesterday's paper, and the Post editorial page is happy with the status quo, that keeps the Public School Charter Board independent of public control and oversight, as evidenced in the editorial cited above, in response to pressure from City Council to add oversight to a disconnected DC Public School Charter Board? (See "Council Members Propose Tighter Rules for Program" and "Charter Board Chief Says Proposed Rules Already on Books" both from the Post.)

The Post should stand for more democracy not less. It might mean fewer investigative articles in the long run, but it would yield a better society. But simultaneously this stand that I believe the Post should express first, last and always must recognize that participatory and representative democracy, in the 21st Century, requires more checks and balances.