County schools form plans for greater visibility

In the midst of preparing for a new middle school and reassigning students, two concerns have lurked in the back of the minds of Orange County Board of Education members — their visibility and communication with the community.

Now board members are taking the first steps toward bridging the gap by pledging to make themselves more accessible at public meetings and posting more information to their Web site.

The ideas came about during a talk by Anne D’Annunzio, spokeswoman for the district, about ways the board could improve its relationship with its constituents.

“We represent the people and were elected by the people to serve the community,” said board member Delores Simpson.

“If we want to remain a part of the community, we need to interact with people and be among them.”

Among the group’s ideas was a plan to make more frequent visits to each school in the district, either individually or as a group.

Besides these visits, board members also plan to meet with parent groups, teacher organizations and the district’s Parent Leadership Council, where they would listen to parents’ concerns and discuss some of the district’s initiatives.

During these sessions, board members would also participate in informal discussions with interested community members.

“I think it is on the mind of every board member: How can we be more accessible?” Chairwoman Libbie Hough said. “Most of the time we think of public officials as being all-powerful and remote.”

Another suggestion is to start a monthly or quarterly “Lunch with the Board” session, which would be similar to the already successful “Lunch with the Superintendent,” D’Annunzio said.

Setting up a table at Hillsborough’s Last Fridays — held by the Hillsborough Arts Council on the last Friday of selected months — and establishing town hall-style meetings at various locations were other suggestions presented Monday.

At Last Fridays, rotating board members would meet the public, share information on current issues and answer any questions citizens might have. The town hall-style meetings would provide a venue for citizens to address the entire board in a less formal setting.

The board also is hoping to take advantage of new features on its Web site — http://www.orange.k12.nc.us — to get more information out to the public.

The board plans to post information about its committees on the site by March, and by April, it wants to debut a public comment page on which anyone could respond to questions posed by board members.

Though the board did not decide which specific actions it wants to take, Monday night gave members a place to start, D’Annunzio said.

“Most of us will want to do as much as we can,” Hough said.

“We’ll have to pace ourselves.”

 

Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.