Philosophers and political thinkers have observed rightly over the centuries that people get the government they deserve. But a couple of news items over the past week got me wondering whether Jefferson County really deserves such bad government.
First there was news that enrollment in the Chimacum School District dropped 11.9 % during the past year. Not to worry though, as Superintendent Rick Thompson noted that
this decline is in keeping with the overall trends of the past two decades. We presume this is supposed to make us all feel better.
Thompson, while taking a break from the arduous task of neglecting 20 years of declining enrollment, contacted some of the parents who pulled their kids out of Chimacum schools to find out why. “There’s not a single cause,” said Thompson, who cited concerns about housing and daycare being in short supply, not to mention families increasingly homeschooling their kids or taking them to Kitsap County, which makes sense. Jefferson County residents who can’t find what they need in local stores already spend millions of dollars in sales tax in Kitsap County so why not send our kids there too?
Perhaps none of the parents told Thompson that they pulled their kids out of Chimacum schools because 75% of 11th graders failed the state’s Smarter Balance Assessment tests in math during the 2016-17 school year. It would also be interesting to learn how many Chimacum High students were allowed to cut math class on March 14 so they could be exploited by the movement to relieve people of their constitutional rights.
Then there’s Laura Parsons, construction project manager for the Water Street road and utility project in Port Townsend. The first phase of the project is not done. It will not be done on time. While admitting the delay, the Berkeley trained civil engineer chirped, “But other staff were telling me that we should be pleased that we are wrapping up such a complex project within a few weeks of the projected completion date.”
The Hoover Dam was a complex project. The Apollo 11 moon landing was a complex project. This is asphalt and concrete and utilities. But let’s congratulate everyone who was part of this blocks-long epic in civil engineering that won’t be done on time. It’s the government equivalent of a youth soccer league participation trophy.
Jefferson Land Trust Executive Director Richard Tucker’s opinion piece in the Port Townsend Leader seemed the most detached from reality. The Land Trust isn’t ‘government’ per se but it works hand in glove with state and local governments and is happy to take government money so they’re part of the club. The lead for Tucker’s July 11 essay reads like an Usborne pre-school fairy tale: “There are many little known pockets of magic scattered throughout our community. One of these hidden treasures is the Kah Tai Prairie Preserve.”
This pocket of magic was less than mystical for 60-year-old Lawrence Merrell Alan, who was beaten bloody in broad daylight there on June 3. Our hidden treasure wasn’t so hidden from William Anthony Ingalsbe and John Rayford Fleming, two housing-challenged guys charged with attacking Alan, who we understand was awaiting trial on charges of selling meth in a school zone when he was attacked. Yeah, let’s take the family to that place.
This is a single week of news about bad government – the government we’ve got. Failing schools are met with a shrug by those in charge of them. Municipalities are satisfied when construction projects don’t get finished as promised to taxpayers. Dangerous public places are promoted as magical. Does Jefferson County really deserve this government? It appears so. Not a lot of people seem inclined to vote those responsible for this mess out of office.
As heartbreaking as these three episodes are, it’s no less tragic to realize a majority of us are okay with this status quo. Those who believe that failed schools, botched road projects and public safety problems are unacceptable seem to be in the minority.
[Editor’s Note: Chimacum High School Principal Brian MacKenzie commented on this column when it appeared at our old blogspot.com site. The comments did not carry over in the transition to the new .com site. Mr. McKenzie asked that we republish his comment. Here it is:
The author gets nearly everything wrong about the Chimacum School District.
Mr. Hogenson falsely accused the current superintendent of “neglecting 20 years of declining enrollment.”
In fact, Mr. Thompson first joined the district just 3 years ago.
Over the past two decades, CSD has worked to address enrollment challenges in three ways:
First, by diversifying CSD’s offerings to compete for students (e.g., developing the Pi and Futures alternative learning programs, adding Advanced Placement courses, expanding College in the High School partnerships with local colleges & universities).
Second, through responsible budgeting. Earlier this year, the state auditor recognized CSD assistant superintendent Art Clarke with the Stewardship Award for 20+ years of effective fiscal management. (PDN 5/11/18)
Third, in the last 3 years, the current board and superintendent have hired all new principals, and have set rigorous performance goals to guide us in our school improvement efforts. (See the CSD board page on the district website.)
Falsely implying that Chimcum High School has poor test scores, Mr. Hogenson asserted that “parents… pulled their kids out of Chimacum schools because 75% of 11th graders failed the state’s Smarter Balance Assessment tests in math during the 2016-17 school year.” Mr. Hogenson neglected to mention that 74% of juniors statewide failed the state math test that year. (Common Core has raised the bar substantially.) In recent years, CHS performance on state tests has hovered around the state average–sometimes just above, sometimes just below. No one is satisfied with that. Chimacum kids need and deserve excellent performance, and everyone at CSD is working hard toward that goal. But Mr. Hogenson is clearly wrong to describe CHS as a “failed school.”
Mr. Hogenson wonders “how many Chimacum High students were allowed to cut math class on March 14 so they could be exploited by the movement to relieve people of their constitutional rights.” The numerical answer is that one-sixth of the student body had a math class scheduled that period, and about half of all students participated in the peaceful and orderly demonstration, so about one-twelfth of CHS students missed less than a half hour of math that day–about 0.3% of the year’s allotted instructional time in the subject.
But none of those students were “exploited.” If Mr. Hogenson saw the next day’s print edition of the PDN, he would have seen a photo of the demonstration, showing a CHS student counterdemonstrator displaying an NRA sign. He might also be interested to learn that in April other CHS students sought and obtained permission to organize an on-campus demonstration in support of gun rights. That second demonstration passed without press coverage, I think because those students did not contact local papers as the organizers of the first demonstration had done.
It is condescending to describe CHS students on either side of the issue as “exploited.” CHS students are thoughtful and rational. Our civics curriculum requires students to consider views across the political spectrum and to weigh evidence in support of competing assertions and positions–in short, to do the work Mr. Hogenson should have done before writing the CSD section of this opinion piece.
CSD will continue to work hard to compete for a shrinking pool of potential students in an aging county with inadequate housing and employment prospects for parents of school-age children. In other contexts, Mr. Hogenson has expressed interest in addressing the county’s economic challenges. I appreciate his efforts on that front, because those challenges are the primary drivers of CSD’s long-term enrollment decline.
I invite Mr. Hogenson to call me at 360.302.5905. I would enjoy an opportunity to show him around CHS, introduce him to our students, share our successes, and demonstrate that CSD constitutes an example of good government in Jefferson County.