BURKEonBOARD

(Oct. 27, 2008) – Hope you got a chance to see the school board candidates forum last Thursday evening. It was a good chance to see the candidates side-by-side. If you missed it live, you can watch replays on the EdChannel (cable channel 10) at 5 a.m., 11 a.m., 5 p.m. and 11 p.m. daily. If that doesn’t work for you, watch the video on the Farmington Independent web site at http://www.farmingtonindependent.com/pages/debate100808. Also take a moment to read the readers comments on the Independent site from folks who watched the forum. Lots of strong opinions.

The ISD192 Watch web site also has a few interesting takes on last week’s forum. Process This, Why Get Rid of NCLB? and Economic Situation Will Affect ISD 192 all look at issues that were discussed at the forum and are definitely worth a read.

There will be a second school board forum. The Rambling River Center and the civics student of FMSW teacher Jon Holmes are collaborating to stage the next forum this Thursday, Oct. 30, at 6:30 p.m. in the Farmington High School Little Theater. The seniors and the teens are putting the questions together so it should be interesting. Haven’t heard if this will be carried on the cable or not, so plan to come out and watch it live.

(Oct. 23, 2008) – The Rotary Club’s school board candidates forum is tonight at 7 p.m. in the Little Theater at Farmington High School. Come out and watch. There may be an opportunity (not guaranteed) to submit questions. If you can’t make it, the Farmington Independent will stream the forum live (and archive it for later viewing, too) from their web site.

The Pioneer Press has posted their Farmington school board candidate profiles with Q&As from the candidates. You can read it here. (Conspicuously absent, current school board chair Julie McKnight.)

The Farmington Independent has also published its voters guide with Q&As in today’s issue. It’s not online as of late morning but it be available later. Here are the questions and my answers to the Independent.
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(Oct. 20, 2008) – A couple of letters to the editor in last week’s two local papers require a response because of grievous factual errors. I have sent the following letter to both papers but don’t expect it to be printed in its entirety because of the length. The full letter is included here.

Dear letters editor,

I feel obliged to respond to the misinformation in recent letters to the editor about my school board candidacy printed in these pages and web site.

The writer’s most damning comments are based on incorrect information.

With regard to finishing what I start, as a city council member in Grand Forks, ND, from June 2000 to June 2002, I finished the term to which I was elected. It was a two year term instead of the normal four year term because of the reapportionment after the 2000 census. In fact, I remained in Grand Forks to finish my term even after my wife and daughters had moved to Farmington.
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(Oct. 19, 2008) – The school board candidate forum has been confirmed. It will be held at 7 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 23, in the Little Theater, Farmington High School.

The Farmington Rotary Club is sponsoring the forum with the Farmington Independent newspaper carrying the forum live from their web site, scheduled to run an hour, but don’t surprised if it goes longer.

Each candidate will get two minutes to make opening and closing statement and to answer each question, so if all six candidates use most of their time (I’ll try not to) there will only be time for three or four questions.

According to the rules distributed to the candidates, the moderator, Mike Burville, will asked prepared questions, and if time allowsthe moderator will ask question from the audience. The forum’s question committee is taking suggestions from the public. If you have a question you’d like to see asked, send it to editor@farmingtonindependent.com.

No word yet if the forum will be carried on the school district’s cable channel, so plan on attending or listening on the internet if you want to know where the candidates are on the issues they’re questioned about.

See you there.

Here’s a quick rundown of things you might want to know.

School Board Debate Likely

The Rotary Club is stepping up to host a candidates forum for the school board contest. It should be confirmed later today. Right now, they’re contacting all the candidate to make sure everyone can attend. It’s tentatively scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 23, 7 p.m., in the Farmington High School Little Theater (same place the school board meets). Thanks to the Rotary Club and the Farmington Independent, which will carry the forum on it web site, for taking on the job. Stay tuned for confirmation.

Special Board Meeting on School Boundaries

With two three-grade middle schools and a fifth elementary school coming on line next year, new school attendance boundaries are being drawn. The ISD192 Boundary Adjustment Committee will present its recommendations at a special school board meeting next Monday, Oct. 20, 6 p.m., at the Farmington High School Little Theater. It will be taped for broadcast on cable channel 10. Other presentations are set at Akin Road Elementary, Tues., Oct. 21, 7 p.m., and Farmington High School Little Theater on Wed., Oct. 22, 7 p.m. Comments and questions about the process can be sent to boundaries@farmington.k12.mn.us.

School Name Suggestions Wanted

The committee named to name three Farmington schools is seeking suggestions. You can suggest new names for all three buildings – the current high school, Farmington Middle School West, and Farmington Middle School East – over the next several weeks. Suggestions can be made through Oct. 31. Submission forms are available at ISD 192 schools or online at www.farmington.k12.mn.us/naming.

New & Improved Burke4Board Signs Here

The new signs arrived yesterday. If you have an old one, we’ll be by to replace it. If you want one, drop an email (tim@burke4board.com) or call 651-463-9341 and leave your name and address where the sign should go and we’ll get it right out.

(Oct. 14, 2008) – We learned some interesting new information at Monday night’s school board work session about the prospective OPEB bond sale and accompanying tax increase. (Too bad you couldn’t see it for yourself because the school board forbids those meetings from being carried on the cable.)

Last night the board got a handout from district finance director Jeff Priess with lots of new information and cost projections going out 40 years and some very scary numbers. It included liability numbers that still wouldn’t be covered by the OPEB bonded trust fund, numbers approaching $1 million/year out past 2020. (continue reading…)

(Oct. 13, 2008) – A woman named “Barbara” writes to me occasionally about the school district and board election. Her most recent missive arrived last night reacting to a message sent earlier on Sunday (Monday afternoon’s school board “work session”).

The lack of tightening the (school district) budget is the worst. How much more can retired individuals like myself take in tax increases? We have lost our retirements and 401K funds, yet the School Board goes full steam ahead. When more and more housing goes into foreclosure and more and more businesses close, what will the School Board do?

Here is a turnip with no blood left to give!

“Barbara” makes an excellent point. Perhaps you’ve noticed the occasional news story about the declining economy, sinking property values (you’ll see how far yours has gone down when your preliminary property tax bill arrives soon from the county), mounting foreclosures, personal and business bankruptcies. (continue reading…)

(Oct. 12, 2008) – Thought you should know that there’s a new blog out there called Tim Burke Watch. The tag line of the blog reads, “Uncovering the tricks, tactics and outright lies of Tim Burke.” Apparently, these guys are not fans. But, that’s just a guess.

You should read it. I just found it this afternoon and now I subscribe. The first post is dated Friday, Oct. 3, so it’s fairly new.

I’ll make a deal with those guys. They can identify my tricks, tactics and outright lies, and I’ll do the same for them. They’ve made four posts so far and I’m counting about eight factual errors right now. I’m waiting for my polygraph machine to come back from the shop to know if these are actual lies. (continue reading…)

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” – From Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet

(Oct. 12, 2008) – What’s in a name? Perhaps more than the Bard lets on.

ISD 192 has formed a Naming Committee to recommend names for three district schools—the new high school that will open next year, the current high school which will become a middle school, and the current Farmington Middle School East which will become an elementary school.

The occasion of naming public buildings is a great opportunity, particularly for schools. We all know schools named to honor the fallen such as any number of Memorial High Schools. We know many Washington, Lincoln and Jefferson schools that honor great leaders. And, like Farmington High School, many are named to show pride of place.

Maybe this time, we might consider naming some of our schools after the great men and women of arts, letters and science. Perhaps even those who called Minnesota home. (continue reading…)

(Oct. 12, 2008) – The school board tactic of meeting to discuss important issues at inopportune times when few can attend continues tomorrow (Monday, Oct. 13) afternoon at 5 p.m.

This is what the board calls “work sessions” when they discuss topics that they will likely vote on two weeks later at the board’s monthly business meeting when they typically take official votes and don’t discuss the details of what they discussed two weeks earlier.

The problem is, the “work sessions” are at a bad time for working folks and families trying to fix dinner and attend their kids’ events. That’s made worse because the board has ordered that these meetings not be carried on cable TV. It’s a recipe for keeping the public in the dark.

Board member Ann Manthey asked this policy be changed so that we might at least watch what our school board is considering, but the other five board members ignored her.

Monday afternoon’s meeting is important because several big issues are on the agenda. (continue reading…)