Las Trampas Questionnaire

By Barry D. McQuain

The Las Trampas Creek Council is group of concerned citizens whose mission is to promote the welfare of children and youth in home, school, and the community. Below are my answers to their four questions.

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1. Adequate Sustainable Funding is an on-going concern in California. What reforms would I suggest or endorse to correct this problem?

School funding must be adequate. Education is currently and has always been labor intensive, yet every other industry in the world is becoming less so. We must seek alternative, less costly methods of creating the same positive outcomes in terms of student achievement.

School funding should be more stable. Education revenue at the state level can come from a number of sources, and we should be advocates to our legislature to demand they set funding levels up to one year or more in advance - with monies that come from less volatile sources than capital gains.

I would favour a system that rewards schools that perform well in meeting its goals and objectives in terms of student achievement if that were to guarantee funding in upcoming years.

The cost side of this equation also deserves attention. When 85% of the costs in our district are related to personnel, we must expect more flexibility that matches the needs and demographics of the community.

I am encouraged and thankful that our local citizens and businesses continue to support the schools and allow our children so many opportunities to learn, especially in the arts. I will continue to support and encourage these groups.

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2. Aside from Funding, what do you perceive to be the greatest challenge facing the school district over the next few years and how would I address it?

Finances are not the greatest problem facing the district. The evidence from many sources, including the latest study from the NEA, demonstrates that increases in funding are not correlated to increases in student performance. I won't turn down a single donation; however, the greatest challenge is not financing.

To me, the greatest challenge is an educational system that is attempting to prepare our children for the 21st century based on teaching practices, tools, methodologies, and technology from the 20th century - or earlier. In the past ten years, the educational experts have demonstrated that a scientific approach to learning produces better student outcomes and can be applied when teaching classroom behavior, creative thinking, memorization, fluency in reading, etc.

We under-utilize what the experts tell us, much like an unused computer is sitting on the side in a computer lab - as an adjunct - as opposed to it being central to our educational processes. Critical thinking is a great goal, but only attainable when our children know practical skills like their times tables with instant recall, learn more than fifteen new vocabulary words per week, or can type more than 30 wpm by the 5th grade.

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3. What role should parents play maintaining/improving public schools in the district?

I believe that parents have an obligation to their children, not to the school district. We should remember that a parent, for the most part, is a volunteer with their time, financial support, and their ideas. I thank the volunteers, but I don't make demands on them. Not everyone can volunteer their time, money, and enthusiasm. Personally, I try to exceed expectations, but I am one of the minority who is fortunate to spend so much time in this service (and serve on the Board).

To improve the system, parents should demand that the school district uses the best practices and methodologies that offer the highest attainable levels of achievement for their children. Parents should demand absolute accountability from the teachers, administration, and board for the results and outcomes that are achieved. Furthermore, parents should voice their opinions on controversial issues when they are initially investigated and the board should communicate these ideas instantly and transparently with no exceptions.

Parents and children are the stakeholders of our schools. The board is responsible to meet the demands of the parents and the state, set strong guidelines for the administration, and assess the results and outcomes upon the execution of these policies.

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4. What skills would I draw upon to be an effective board member?

- My financial skills. I have fifteen years of experience as a banker dealing with budgets, investments, and business cycles.

- My previous work with neurophysiologists to determine optimal learning rates. The evidence is unambiguous - learning is a scientific process and education is much more of a science than an art. I will seek to provide our teachers with the best tools so our children can reach their potential.

- My experience as a school volunteer and a former part-time teacher. I have taught and worked with five year olds and eighty-five year olds demonstrating the power of learning based off of scientific principles.

- My statistical and mathematical knowledge is first-rate. My career was based on identifying statistical trends before my competitors - this can be directly applied to school data, test scores, demographics, and financial planning.

- My knowledge of the application of technology. I've managed teams of software engineers for years and know how to evaluate what works and what doesn't.

- My knowledge and belief in the application of scientific principals and their ability to deliver results.

- My life-long passion for learning

- My experience as a parent (of four daughters) will also help.