This Just In ...

A STUNNING pronouncement from Franklin's school board president

Posted by Kevin Fischer on April 19, 2012

Despite the results of the recent Franklin School Board elections where voters sent a strong message they demand fiscal responsibility and the sentiments of the vast majority of Franklin taxpayers, the arrogant, power-hungry Franklin Public School administration is hell bent on pursuing an obscenely expensive, unnecessary “Facilities Master Plan.”

A color, multi-page newsletter about the Master Plan has been sent to Franklin households. Mine came in the mail today.

Page One is a lengthy introductory message from Franklin School Board President (maybe and hopefully not for long) Debbie Larson. Larson informs that the Master Plan has been developed based on feedback from public workshops and listening sessions. The fact is the odds are overwhelming if you are from Franklin and are reading this, you didn’t attend or participate in any such workshops or listening sessions. Doesn’t matter to the tax and spend bunch currently running our school system.

Larson writes the main components of the Master Plan include remodeling the middle and high school, moving sixth-grade students to the middle school, creating facilities that enhance student learning in a safe environment (there’s no definitive data or proof how they’ accomplish this,) and creating flexible learning spaces that are cost effective, energy efficient, and utilize technology to support personalized learning.

Folks, the above are what are referred to as “glittering generalities.” It all sounds nicey-nicey, yet there’s nothing concrete to back up what they’re promising.

Now we get to the extremely revealing and shocking part of Larson’s pitch. Oh, this is good. She writes:

‘If the entire Master Plan was implemented at one time, the cost would exceed $100 Million.”

STOP RIGHT THERE!

The $100 million-plus price tag is an item I blogged about on March 20, 2012.

OK. So Larson concedes to the astronomical cost. But being the tax and spender Larson is, she just can't help herself. This is very revealing. Larson continues, with faux concern:

"We realize that during these difficult economic times, it is not realistic to implement the entire Master Plan at one time."

Please. Like she really cares.

Larson goes on, and this is key. Read carefully:

"Therefore, our goal is to implement the Facility Master Plan in phases, based on the priorities of community AND willingness to financially support the project."

Larson obviously must think we're all a bunch of ignoramuses. 

It's painfully obvious the administration supports a full-blown $100-million plus facilities plan, whether it's all at once, or drawn out over time.

Who the hell are they trying to pull the wool over?

As always, they will use a  bogus survey to sell their scheme (Hey, we asked, this is what the public wants). It's interesting the survey questions ask participants to gauge their support for a particular component of the Master Plan: High, Medium, or Low. The option of ZERO, not going through with a particular component at all is not offered to anyone filling out the survey.

Readers are steered toward participating online. That is also interesting. It's been documented that a huge majority of Franklin residents do not have children attending our public schools. A lot of them might not have computers and might object to any or all of the Master Plan. Could this survey be set up to prevent this faction from weighing in?

Out of touch Debbie Larson has played her hand. She needs to be dumped as president at the next school board meeting. Then she and a few other board members need to be voted out of office next April.

We began to take back our school board and administration this month. We can't stop now.