By Randall Woodfin
When we took office a year ago as Birmingham school board members, we made a pledge to the community, to our employees and, most importantly, to the schoolchildren and their parents that we would do things different from the way things were done in the past.
We adopted a code of ethics to govern how we interact with each other, the superintendent and the public. We pledged not to micromanage, that our behavior would be ethically and morally sound, and that whatever actions we take will always be in the best interests of the students we are entrusted to educate.
A year later, I believe we have made good on that pledge. We have also seen the school system make considerable progress.
This school board inherited a school system that had been taken over by the state and whose accreditation was at risk. Birmingham City Schools were routinely criticized for being top heavy in administrators and for running up legal fees that were the highest in the state.
Now, the school system is no longer on accreditation probation and soon will be out from under state oversight. Spending on lawyers has been sliced to a fraction of the amount in past years. And – this might surprise many people – Birmingham City Schools’ administrative overhead has been reduced to 3.4 percent of budget, well below the state’s recommended 5 percent.
With our capital building program nearly complete, our schools are in great shape and provide our students the technology they need in today’s world.
Academically, graduation rates are up, and dropout rates are down. More students are taking Advanced Placement classes, career academies have been expanded, and we offer prekindergarten at more schools.
And, where before the school system virtually had no reserve funds, we now have an operating surplus of about $20 million.
I don’t say all this to take credit for the improvements. The real credit goes to Superintendent Craig Witherspoon and his staff, to the state intervention team that came in and made tough decisions, and to the 2,600 teachers, administrators and other employees who work hard on a daily basis to make the school system the best it can be.
My point is Birmingham schools are moving in the right direction, and this school board is committed to doing everything it possibly can to continue that momentum.
The recent resignation of Superintendent Witherspoon was viewed by some as a setback to the progress made. Certainly, the superintendent has been an important reason why the school system has made the strides it has, and this board has worked well with him. We thank Dr. Witherspoon for his fine work during a tumultuous time.
Rather than seeing Dr. Witherspoon’s departure at the end of this school semester as a reminder of the struggles of the past we collectively have worked so hard to overcome, the members of the Birmingham Board of Education see the search for a new superintendent as an opportunity to lay the foundation for an even stronger school system by fully engaging the public throughout the process.
For a school system to work, the superintendent must be a strong leader. He or she must motivate and provide direction to principals, teachers and other school employees. In the community, the superintendent must inspire a belief in our schools and champion a vision for the future that everyone can embrace. And he or she must communicate effectively with all the stakeholders: employees, students, parents, community leaders, businesses, churches and elected officials.
To get the best superintendent, we will conduct an open and thorough national search. This process will take up to six months from the time Dr. Witherspoon announced his resignation, and we pledge it will be open and transparent so every parent, every citizen will see and understand every step.
The community will have direct input. We want citizens to give us their “wish list” of job skills, talents, background and other characteristics they believe the new superintendent should possess.
The search will be competitive. We will work with the best search firm possible to lead this nationwide search, while actively encouraging the best candidates to apply, including current system employees.
This process – open, engaging and thorough – will help ensure that when school opens in the fall of 2015, Birmingham City Schools will be under the leadership of a strong, capable, visionary superintendent whom the community will proudly welcome with open arms.
Randall Woodfin is president of the Birmingham Board of Education. Email: rwoodfin@bhm.k12.al.us.
