Taos Super and Board Debate Elections

This is one of the strangest movidas I ever observed in El Norte. A school superintendent, apparently afraid of the election results tomorrow, wants to cancel the people’s right to vote. See desperate email exchange below. Say What El Weston?

The County Clerk reminds us that we proceeded on Tue. 9/11 to hold an important county election.

See exchange: El Weston, Arsenio, Lorraine, Chuby, Stella.

E-Mail Exchange

Date: Mon, 31 Jan 2011 08:05:55 -0600

Subject: Weather and voting

From: Rod Weston

To: Arsenio Cordova

Mr. Cordova,

I am concerned that a major snowstorm is forecast for election day. My

intention is to check on this issue today, not after the fact. It may be

necessary to involve the two major parties in this discussion. Can you tell

me who is the Chair of the Taos County Republican Party?

I’ll be checking with the county folks this morning.

Rod

From: Arsenio Cordova

Sent: Monday, January 31, 2011 9:37 AM

To: Rod Weston

Cc: lorraine coca ruiz

Subject: RE: Weather and voting

Dr. Weston,

The name of the Republican chairman is Michael Dobbs.  However, this is a non-partisan election, so it may not be necessary to call him.  The County Clerk is in charge of this election.  I don’t understand why you and Chuby want to cancel the election.  The weather problems exist throughout the state, according to the weatherman.  No other school district is considering changing an election date that is prescribed by law.

Arsenio Cordova

Dr. Weston,

You, the Democratic Chairman, Republican Chairman, have no authority in cancelling a school board election or any election for that matter. As far as I know in the history of the United States, elections have never  been cancelled because of weather. I don’t know what your involvement in this election is, as far as I know you live at another county.  You have plenty of work on your plate without having to worry about an election.

Just take care of school business!

Lorraine Coca-Ruiz

Board President

Arsenio or Lorraine,

Are you guys kidding? Where do you guys get off accusing me or any one of trying to cancel the election? Yes Arsenio the election is prescribed by law but common sense would also tell you that it is also protected by law. Here you go again with outrageous accusations with no supporting evidence!

By the way not only I, but just about every one in this community can’t wait for this election to take place and for there to be a change in the LEADERSHIP or a change in the lack of leadership over the last four years! I’m guessing you two had already figured that out which was made evident by you guys not seeking re-election.

I’m imagining your ego couldn’t have survived the crushing defeat that would have been eminent. So to that end I can’t wait for tomorrow and the winds of change to come!

PS. I hope you will ask Bill Whaley to post this along with your emails on his friction.

Chuby

Stella Gallegos

Taos School Board Issues and Endorsements

If you read the local weekly or listen to the news on radio, you’d think the school board election was about improving relations among the adults—not about improving the educational opportunities for children. The Taos News, T-Fuse, and Yes for Kids have endorsed candidates variously representing reactionary attitudes, retrograde political behavior and associations, or naïve assumptions about education and the potential power to change TMS. Just before a system dies, the participants in it make a last-ditch convulsive effort to survive and create a frenzy of activity; hence we have so many running for the board (or calling for the cancellation of elections!).

If you listen to recent speeches by President Barack Obama and Gov. Susanna Martinez you get the idea that public school education and our students are in trouble. A few candidates and board members recognize this issue but the mainstream press and regressive supporters ignore the facts. They are basically voting to support the status quo at CRAB Hall. Meanwhile, the real world of education in Taos itself is changing rapidly.

The Taos Charter School and Anansi School are only the best known of the alternative models. A charter high school, based on an experiential learning and an academy using the latest in online technology, offer students programs paced to fit individual learning styles. Private schools for elementary age children or home schooling with the aid of online programs are exploding. Home scholars have solved socialization problems due to community programs of quality for children in the arts and recreation. The public schools are no longer competitive and offer many parents a poor option today.

Last year, UNM-Taos graduated 78 students through its GED program. The GED has become a commonly accepted passport to community colleges and jobs—no fuss, no muss. You qualify for the UNM lottery scholarship or a job at the Taos County Detention Center—on the outside—with a GED. Students today grow up quickly. The world beyond middle school has changed and students are changing with it.

The following endorsements reflect a serious analysis and perhaps Taosenos’ last chance to retrieve TMS from a downward spiral.

Taos Friction endorses Gene Sanchez, the quixotic public servant, the first THS grad to become an architect. He built 13 schools during his career. The TMS building program needs a board member familiar with planning, buildings, and blueprints. Plus Mr. Sanchez has attended board meetings, Citizens Oversight Meetings, and met with parents regarding our burgeoning and the disgracefully managed Special Needs program. He’s a budget maven on the side.

Attorney Jake Caldwell, who has learned much about politics and governing at the County, displays a calm demeanor and professional attitude toward problems. Given the extraordinary number of EEOC and Civil Rights complaints, audits, and investigations currently being undertaken, the board needs an attorney in house. He graduated from THS, got his undergraduate degree and law degree and returned to Taos.

A retired USMC vet with a business degree from UNM, Enrico Velasquez strikes us as a no-nonsense guy, who has also supervised the education of his grandchildren. He is supported by the community in Ranchos de Taos and gotten his feet wet as an incumbent. In particular, he has taken on the issue of curriculum unlike any of the other candidates.

We know, of course, that most Taosenos make political decisions based on popular notions and private grievances about personalities. But, if you care about the long and short term of your child’s education, vote for one of the three up above. As Flavio says, the power struggle at CRAB Hall isn’t for the faint of heart.

Editor’s Note.

It is surprising that a decades’ long decline in enrollment, graduation rates, and test scores at TMS hasn’t garnered more attention during this year’s school board election. Teachers and administrators should offer students a reason to come to school. TMS generally ignores the opportunities to use the historic and rich local culture as a springboard for relevant teaching lessons.

The Hispanic language, Native American traditions, and American exploration of the west are very much a part of Taos past and present. The geology, archeology, architecture, history, art and culture of Taos offer concrete examples to students as foundational principles of identity. Local museums and artists, writers and educators, and multi-cultural local Ancianos are as close as an acequia, a land grant sign, or Taos Pueblo.

The University of New Mexico has a fine program in Southwestern Studies underscored by UNM Press publications. UNM’s local branch and bachelor’s and graduate programs offer courses that incorporate Taos culture. Many of these same ideas and principles, whether about land grant issues or water rights, the history of the indigenous people or the Spanish and American conquests, could be introduced to students well before high school.

Courses in local culture teach students who they are and who they can become. By educating students and stimulating their imaginations, teachers spark the passions that stimulate the search for lifelong skills—both practical and hypothetical. Tomorrow’s job market may be problematical. But a life enriched by local culture enriches the soul and can be very satisfying indeed. It is a rare thing to live in a place where the texture of daily culture is so rich even as the school marms ignore it.