And Then There Were Six

I attended last night's board meeting to witness to adoption of the 2008-2009 budget. The adoption of the budget by 5-0 with Directors Sargent and Williams absent was no surprise, as the board has been working on the budget for some time. The student representative, Olin Stickler, voted yes, unofficially, as well.

The meeting was not well attended by the public. I suppose for all intents and purposes it was rather boring, but nonetheless, I was surprised that there were a handful of spectators aside from myself.

One of the most notable things about the meeting last night was that it was Dan Ryan's last as the Director for Zone 4. There were a great deal of heartfelt words and goodbyes and whatnot. It was touching. Ryan will be moving on to the Portland Schools Foundation and leaving his place on the board. According to comments made, they are hoping to have a replacement soon.

As with other situations like this, I am reserving judgement. Ryan seems to have focus on the children of Portland, which is always a good thing. Perhaps this connection with PSF will be good for our schools.

Someone close to me said something the other day, it was "those with the money have the control." It is a simple and obvious statement, and it is true. I am trying to keep those words in mind. At the same time, I hope that good things come of this change, and I wish Dan Ryan well in his new position.

There is a special board meeting coming up soon, and I will post more on that when the time comes.

The Campaign is on!

I wasn't aware (until Thomas kindly pointed out), that there are plenty of people concerned with the May 2009 school board race already. I am so excited to interact with these people! I love the enthusiasm I read in blogs and comments.

It is inspiring me to believe even stronger that we can make a difference.

May 2009 is far away, but I feel like the campaign has essentially started.

More things will be posted on my website (http://www.lisarichardson.org/) about me and my ideas for school board.

I ask that you be patient with me. What I say is not written in stone. I am not asking for people to vote for ME, rather the idea that we can all have a voice. I want to work for and with the community of Zone 6, and if they want something different than I think is best, I am humble enough to rethink a position. When I say community, I mean community, not the folks with the deepest pockets. Though, I won't deny that supporters with deep pockets can be great also, but I certainly won't sell a position.

Please share your thoughts, comments, and ideas about what you see posted on the site when it arrives. There is a lot of wisdom out there, and with cooperation, we can make this race important to a lot of people, and help pave the way for significant change and achievement within the district.

I cannot say enough how excited I am.

Thank you!