Clinkscale & Buford

I suspect that readers of this blog already know a great deal about the people and issues involved in tomorrow's School Board races. So, you are spared the 10,000 word version of this posting.

The St. Louis public schools have been bad so long that turning them completely around is going to take time. There's still plenty to do in a school district that prepares too few of its students for college, the workplace, or life. But, there has been some important progress over the past three years.

As School Board president, Darnetta Clinkscale approved the first hard choices that closed down half-empty schools, laid off unnecessary administrators, improved teachers' pay while demanding greater effort from them, and put more of the insolvent district's resources back in the classroom. Student achievement levels are up: 8 of the 9 MAP categories have seen improvement in test scores since Clinkscale was elected three years ago.

Clinkscale and Jim Buford, who joined the Board last year, have hired a good superintendent in Creg Williams and are willing to let Dr. Williams - not individual Board members or employee groups - run the school district. And Buford has brought the same passion to the Board of Education that he has to his day job as president of the St. Louis Urban League.

Clinkscale and Buford deserve our support on Election Day, Tuesday, April 4th.