School Board Vice President unsure of how to be 'fiscally responsible'

In our ongoing committment to hold Franklin's elected representatives, including Franklin School Board members, accountable for their actions or lack thereof on the crucial issues facing our City now and in the future and with the Franklin School District facing a $2.5 million reduction in state funding, school board vice president Jeff Traylor asked how can the Board be fiscally responsible?  Mr. Traylor’s remarks were recorded by our cameras during the Franklin School Board’s Special Meeting on April 6, 2011, during a discussion between board members concerning the board’s annual self-evaluation.

After writing Franklin School District facing $2.5 million decrease in state funding about two weeks ago, we decided to take another look at some of the statements and comments made by Franklin School Board members during this meeting, which we had video taped portions of.

Our goal in writing this story was to try to determine whether school board members seemed aware of this potential multi-million dollar decrease in state funding for the District.  We also decided to review the Board’s latest Goals to see how they compared with board members’ views and beliefs.  Following is Franklin Public Schools’ latest Board Goals taken from its website.

DISTRICT FOCUS: CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT IN STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

STATEMENT of PURPOSE

The primary responsibility of the Franklin Board of Education is to ensure that the District operates under sound fiscal management, that student achievement is our highest priority, and that operational processes and procedures are efficient and effective.

Here is Mr. Traylor’s statement which appears on the Franklin Public School District’s website.

"I serve on the Franklin Board of Education as a way to make a difference in the schools. I want to improve educational opportunities for all students and also keep the district financially responsible to both the students and community."

Here is another quote by Mr. Traylor from our video, which comes at approximately the 3:00 mark in the video.

“We’re here to get the best education for the best price, that’s really the bottom line.

If we spend a whole bunch of money discussing, or wasting time, or wasting the administration’s, then we’re counter-producting [sic] what we’re really doing.  Everybody throws up that word; oh, ya gotta be ‘fiscally responsible.’  Really, okay, how?  What would you like?  Or, should we spend a whole bunch of money looking for hidden ‘air bubbles’—looking for hidden problems, so we wasting a bunch of time; a bunch of administrative time, or are we trying to move things forward…”

We‘ll leave you with this final quote on government.

“Men, to act with [vigor] and effect, must have time to mature measures, and judgment and experience, as to the best method of applying them. They must not be hurried on to their conclusions by the passions, or the fears of the multitude. They must deliberate, as well as resolve.”

—Joseph Story, Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, May 23, 1808 – March 3, 1809.

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