The Red Plan defenders must stick up for themselves on occasion and today Judy Punyko Seliga wrote a sunny op ed piece about the long term good. She may be right. Yesterday’s editorial in which economist Drew Digby points out the younger average ages of Duluth residents might be, as Digby maintains, a sign of growth. However, the economist fails to mention the transient nature of the ever burgeoning college population. Furthermore there is no mention that Duluth very elderly population has had a high mortality rate since the last Census. Its likely that the apparent growth of the youthful cohorts has more to do with the loss of so many elderly people which has skewed the demographic ratios toward the young.
Today the Trib teamed up with Judy to editorialze that the District is getting its “house in order.” The editors extensively quoted Judy’s ally Ann Wasson and put in this laughable passage:
The district also has become more visible in the community, including at chamber-sponsored events and elsewhere; has improved communications, not only internally but with parents and the media; has reduced costs by purchasing for all schools rather than school by school, among many sensible steps; and by being more transparent.
“Transparency has been a priority for Keith,†Wasson said. “He has taken the time to explain and re-explain budgets, actions and funding to us. It is refreshing.”
Transparency is about the last word I would use to describe anything emanating from our Superintendent. Its not surprising that this is the same Editorial Board that swallowed the Superintendent’s phony claim that the School Board would soon be swimming in $32 million dollars and trumpeted it with glee in another editorial last July. The Trib editors have yet to explain why this has failed to materialize I might add. It was yet another case of the opaque leading the blind much rather than evidence of transparency.
The Red Plan has constantly gotten me to think back on the past which is rich with irony. I recently recalled how my school board had to fill a vacancy when Dorothy Neumann died. Our Board interviewed a dozen aspirants to fill her seat. We chose a great fellow, Bob Nygaard, who was subsequently defeated by Ann Wasson in the next election. One of the people who applied to fill that position was Judy Seliga-Punyko’s husband, Bill, a school administrator who was working in Wisconsin.
Bill has frequently written letters supporting the Red Plan decision that his wife has stoutly defended and the Board majority which brought the construction about. At the time he applied for the vacancy I was very pleased because back then Judy was a supporter of mine. However, whatever Judy though of me it was apparent her husband thought little of our school board.
During his interview for the vacancy Bill’s body language and answers to our questions reeked of Mark Twains disdain for our school board. “First God created idiots. That was just for practice. Then he created school boards.” Perhaps it was the natural revulsion of a school bureaucrat for an elective board that he viewed as ignorant and interfering. Whatever was going through Bill’s mind he telegraphed the message that if we were smart enough to choose him to serve with us he would reluctantly accept our choice and strive to straighten us out.
It must painful for Bill, as a school board member’s spouse, to know that a great many people in Duluth feel the same way about Duluth’s current school board.
