Kevin Chavous, Democratic Candidate for
Ward 7 Councilmember in the
September 12, 2000, Primary
Parents United for the D.C. Public Schools Questionnaire
August 2000

The appointed members should be citizens who have complimentary skills and expertise who hake been involved in their schools. The Mayor anal Council will ensure that candidates possess educational, finance and/or management expertise. Most important, the Council will. confirm persons who demonstrate strong commitment to children.

I feel strongly that at least two of the appointees should be East-of-the River residents. A high percentage of our public school students live East-of-the River and they are not proportionally represented by the elected school board members.

2. What is the difference between oversight and micro-management of the school system? What is the role of the Council with respect to public schools since some members of the School Board now have a relationship with the Council. How with you assure that the Superintendent is accountable to the School Board rather than pulled between the Mayor, Council arid School Board?

Your question is a good one. Through oversight, the Council fosters effective learning for our children by ensuring that the hard questions are asked and that solutions axe found to difficult problems. As a Councilmember, I have oversight responsibilities that revolve around the budget and the efficient expenditure of allocated ponies. Our budget must result in improvement in the classroom. I guard against fraud waste and corruption. I ensure that appointments axe made based on strong qualifications and that contracts are awarded fairly within competitive costs. I have conducted numerous oversight hearings and have demanded that specific information be provided au that operation of the DCPS, public charter schools, UDC, etc. are understandable and noble. This wall not change. Even after the new School Board is sworn in, the Council will oversee the schools budget, ensuring that budgetary assumptions are clear and reasonable.

I also provide constituent services and have frequently received complaints against the DCPS end other DC agencies. My staff has written letters on constituents' behalf, has arranged meetings offered suggestions and, on occasion, required that changes be made. This will not change. I will continue to investigate complaints and assist citizens to understand their. schools.

The charter amendment recently passed by DC voters details the roles of the school board, To:

• Govern the public schools in the District of Columbia;
• Establish policy;
• Hire, evaluate and can remove a superintendent who shall be responsible for the day-to-day operation of the public schools;
• Approve an annual budget;
• Establish personnel policy, but not make personnel decisions or negotiate with representatives of. employee organizations.

I will assure strict adherence to these roles and call aggressively upon the Mayor and the Council to refrain from. managerial. and operational interference. I believe that the charter amendment has established the perimeters of the School Board's authority and responsibilities. There should be few contradictory "pulls" on the superintendent.

3. What steps would you take to see that the schools system's operating budget and capital budget are adequately funded to meet students' needs for a high quality educational program? Please include comments on financing for new school construction and rehabilitation and for funding high quality occupational training/career development opportunities that do not now exist.

I will ensure, as I did this year, that the Uniform Per Pupil Formula determines the allocation of the public schools' monies. There was and there will be full-funding of the Formula. I will maintain a dialogue with parents, teachers and administrators at the local school level to ensure that the Uniform Per Pupil Funding Formula is adequate and uniformly applied and that the major portion of these monies are spent in the classrooms. Under my term and leadership in schools issues, the funds available for public education have increased by $260 million.

My staff is directly involved in the Master Facilities Planning Process. I will use the full weight of my Committee to ensure that school construction aid modernization as defined by the approved Master Facilities plan is fully funded.. I believe that we can finally reach the goal of 10 new and modernized buildings a year and finally provide a 21st Century learning environment for our children.

I am concerned that the DCPS has not made adequate progress  in occupational training/career development, particularly in the area of preparation for jobs in information technology. I will continue to work to ensure that our school overcome the digital. divide that currently exists in our low income neighborhoods. Every high school should offer a high technology logy curriculum.

DCPS has placed great emphasis on. college preparatory learning. I support more funding for occupational. training/career development opportunities. The vocational school concept must again become an integral part of the education system.

4. Our older students have such low achievement levels that they will not graduate with competitive skills unless they receive additional support. What are you willing to do to help the school system raise achievement at the high school level? Would you accept differentiated diplomas so that students who do not pass requirements and tests receive a diploma that is different from the diploma for students who do pass requirements and test?

I believe that our schools must maintain standards. A DCPS high school diploma must have meaning. I understand the need for differentiated diplomas for students who are assessed td have learning disabilities that preclude diploma-level performance. However, I believe that DCPS and our public charter schools must offer improved summer sessions, after school assistance and an additional year option rather the award a depreciated diploma.

Too many of our high school graduates are reading significantly below grade level. I believe that we must make some dramatic changes to address this problem. I strongly support a major emphasis in early childhood intervention and support a pilot of SmartStart learning at age 3 to enable children to begin to read, write and count by the 1st grade and, in some instances, kindergarten. I will in the fall convene student achievement oversight hearings to both review the superintendent's goals aid objectives and to hear testimony from expert witnesses from neighboring jurisdictions and urban school districts around the country to share experiences and best practices.

5. If you have children, do (did) your children attend D.C. Public Schools?

No. My two sons attend private parochial schools. My wife and I want our sons to attend   schools that provided religious guidance.