Introduction
As an elected official on the Barrington School Committee, I am charged with many responsibilities. Personally I believe that connecting to the community, and retaining that voice of our community as we grow and evolve as a District is one of the most important things I can do. This is why I am writing to you today.
I Need Your Help
I try to be accessible to everyone in town, from my friends and neighbors to those of you who email me (mccrannp@barringtonschools.org). But there’s a gap between accessibility and action that’s really important to share out with you.
The following is a list of many ways to tell me about a situation, but they aren’t the best steps towards creating a solution. (Note: If you have an issue related to some aspect of our schools that is a crisis or similarly serious situation that demands immediate action, I urge you to contact the Superintendent immediately.)
⭐ Telling me at a dinner party;
⭐ Stopping me at the supermarket;
⭐ Mentioning it to me as I walk my dog;
⭐ Dropping it into some locker room conversation at the YMCA;
⭐ Posting it to one of the many diverse and active social media groups related to our schools.
Don’t get me wrong. I really enjoy talking about our Schools and our Town. And I want you to talk to me. The real question here is do you want to create a change? If so, there’s a better way to make it happen.
What’s Missing in the Above List?
Speaking About the Problem to the People Involved: This is a big one, and takes courage. I appreciate that. The best way is the most direct way. If my neighbor is doing something on my property, the first step is to reach out to my neighbor. As challenging and as scary as it might seem, giving people the chance to learn of the problem you are experiencing and to act accordingly (if they see fit) is really, really important.
Escalating the Problems which aren’t Addressed or Acted Upon: Similar to the point before, this requires faith in our School leadership and more courage. In this case, you would be talking to school leadership about the situation with specific information about the problem as you ask for help.
Being Brave: I recognize that speaking / emailing officially about any topic means trusting in the confidentiality and professionalism of our schools and staff as you clearly outline the who, what, where, when and why of the situation. Many of you have spoken about fear of retribution against your child or children — either interpersonally or on an academic level — and I appreciate those fears. At the same time, without your voice on the record, there is no accountability requirement on the problem side of the equation. I encourage you to be brave, and if you’d like to connect with me privately before you move forward, please email me: mccrannp@barringtonschools.org.
Full Disclosure: As a member of your School Committee I am part of a group which works together once or twice a month and is charged ultimately with creating policy for our schools and supervising the Superintendent. We are effectively meant to be the last stop on your journey for change in our schools, not the first. I will listen to you, and I want to hear from you, but I will refer you to act as locally as possible first (see Engagement process example below).
An Example Process for Engagement
This is in no way official, but I hope that this outline helps guide you to finding the best possible path to a solution that helps your situation and all future instances like the situation you are experiencing. Consider the following a quick set of steps for a hypothetical problem that happens in your child’s classroom.
Step 1: Contact the Person Most Responsible. In this hypothetical example, the Teacher.
Step 2: Contact the Individual’s Supervisor if the answer is Unsatisfactory, Delayed or effective Action isn’t taken. In this hypothetical example, the building Principal or Asst. Principal.
Step 3: Contact the Superintendent if the Supervisor’s answer is Unsatisfactory, Delayed or effective Action isn’t taken. In this hypothetical example, the Superintendent.
Step 4: Notify the School Committee if the Superintendent’s answer is Unsatisfactory, Delayed or effective Action isn’t taken. Both in an email to the entire committee (BPS-School-Committee@barringtonschools.org) and, if possible, by speaking at the Public Comment section of our next meeting (https://www.barringtonschools.org/o/barrington-schools/events).
Additional Guidance
Focus Each Message + End with a Deadline: When there is an issue inside the school system, the specificity of your message really makes a difference. Talking face-to-face matters, but I encourage you to also communicate electronically for an official record. Including the date, time, location and involved people will help those responsible move forward with learning more about the situation and take appropriate action. In addition to those details, I strongly suggest you give a deadline for a response/action. Choosing a deadline of seven days, for example, would give sufficient time for a suitable response or remedy to be created in light of what you have shared.
Share the Information Forward: If you need to move to the next step of the Engagement Process, be sure to include a copy of the message you initially sent as well as any / all communication related to the situation. This insures integrity of the process, passes along actual information vs heresy, and demonstrates how you have diligently tried to address the issue.
A Path to a Solution
Depending on the response at each step it’s possible you may be compelled to write to the entire school committee (BPS-School-Committee@barringtonschools.org). At that point in time you will likely have several emails and responses to attach or include with your email notifying the School Committee about what is happening. We can have the item placed on a future agenda for discussion and, thanks to your email, will be compelled to give you clarity with a response or resolution from the District itself (we do not run the schools).
As a School Committee member I want you to know I welcome it all – your emails, comments, phone calls, coffee chats and communications. When you see me in public, you should talk to me. I want to hear from you.
There are many incredible things about our Community, our Schools and the People who work and live here. But I also know that we have challenges to address. The more information I have about a situation, including attempts at solving the issue within the schools at each level, the more effectively I can bring awareness to the situation you have written about, and hopefully a resolution.
Creating a place where all of our students are empowered to excel is a community-wide undertaking. The more transparent and candid we can be about what makes Barrington Schools a great place to learn and grow, the more we can ensure that what we have built here together will continue to grow and evolve to serve our current and future students at the highest levels.
Thank you for reading this far.
Patrick McCrann (mccrannp@barringtonschools.org, on Facebook)