Tulsa School Board Office 5: Shane Saunders questionnaire response

1. Educational philosophy: Modern, faddish, technology-driven approaches to instruction are failing to deliver the promised educational results. An increasing number of families are opting for a traditional approach to learning known as the classical trivium -- grammar, logic, and rhetoric -- described in Dorothy Sayers' essay, "The Lost Tools of Learning." In elementary years, known as the grammar stage, the classical approach emphasizes memorization of facts and methods, which gives children a sense of mastery and accomplishment and provides a solid foundation for subsequent learning. This type of curriculum is used in traditional public schools (e.g., Chicago Public Schools), in public charter schools (e.g., Great Hearts in Arizona and Texas), in private schools, and by homeschool families. As a school board member, would you support introducing a classical curriculum in schools where modern methods are failing? Do you believe the School Board has the authority and responsibility to direct the curriculum and educational philosophy of TPS, or do you believe the board should always defer to the Superintendent on those issues?

I support a classical curriculum, as described, period. Failing modern methods or not grammar, logic, and rhetoric are essential skills that all students in TPS should learn. This is also the approach I take at home with my own children. One of my undergraduate degrees is in Classics and, beyond just Latin and Greek, my course of study taught me reasoning, critical thought, argument, and rhetoric. These are universal skills that apply in any industry or field and an early foundation in these building blocks of language and reasoning will give our students a tremendous advantage.

For the second part of the question, I believe that the School Board certainly has the authority to direct curriculum and educational philosophy. However, there is a big difference between governance and management and the role of the School Board is as the governing body. In a high-functioning organization, the Board puts the experts and professionals in place to do the job that they are hired to do (they are the managers). In this regard, I believe decisions regarding curriculum initially belong with experts in the field of education hired to implement the most effective course of study. The board then has an essential oversight responsibility to ensure that the chosen methods are working. In instances where a course correction is necessary (and there are legion in TPS) I will not hesitate to step into that oversight role in order to effect change in both personnel and curriculum/philosophy.

2. Patriotism: For earlier generations, patriotism was a common theme of public education, uniting students without respect to race, class, religion, or ethnic heritage. Should TPS seek to encourage a sense of pride and gratitude in American history and a special love of country? Do you personally consider the existence of the United States of America as a blessing to be celebrated or a tragedy to be mourned?

For me this question is straight forward and easy to answer: Absolutely 100% we should be encouraging pride, gratitude, and love of the greatest country known to man. The United States is the single greatest force for liberty and the strongest economic engine the world has ever known and it is indeed a blessing.

3. Oklahoma history and the Land Run: Re-enactments of the 1889 Land Run every April are a fun tradition to help elementary students connect with the history of our state. But activists have claimed, contrary to the historical record, that the Land Run was an act of genocide, and have persuaded Oklahoma City Public Schools to ban re-enactments of the event that created Oklahoma City itself. Do you support or oppose holding 1889 Land Run re-enactments in Tulsa schools?

Support.

4. Music in schools: Numerous studies establish the developmental and behavioral benefits of singing and making music in early childhood. Do you support or oppose making music a standard part of elementary education?

Support. Absolutely essential.

5. Protecting female spaces: Superintendent Gist has decreed that transgender students "have the right to use restrooms, locker rooms, and other facilities that are consistent with their gender identity." But girls and young women across the country have expressed a preference for female-only spaces and feel vulnerable if forced to share private spaces with males. Gender self-identification opens the door for males to feign transgender identity to gain access to private female spaces. Female athletes are being pushed out of opportunities for victories and scholarships by stronger and faster males who claim to be transgender. How would you change TPS policy to protect female-only spaces and female athletic opportunity?

In late 2015 and early 2016 Tulsa Public Schools adopted a forward-thinking and comprehensive policy dealing with a wide-ranging set of issues related to LGBTQ rights and protections. Among these was a commitment that, at every TPS site, at least one gender-neutral facility would be available. I would not seek to change this policy. Because, if for no other reason, doing so would open the district to guaranteed litigation and legal liability.

6. Foundations: The George Kaiser Family Foundation has been a generous donor to many initiatives around Tulsa, but many citizens are concerned that GKFF's generosity has come with strings attached, not only for non-profit beneficiaries, but for government entities as well. GKFF-affiliated donors are often found on the campaign disclosure forms of candidates for local office. Should the Tulsa School Board always defer to the wishes of GKFF and other generous benefactors? Are there any situations where the school board have refused a request of GKFF or other foundations or refused a grant?

The School Board has a responsibility to review each and every potential grant that involves restricted use of funds provided by the grant and, more importantly, should never defer to the wishes of any institution or benefactor. I can think of an unlimited number of reasons why or situations where I would vote against accepting a grant or donation.

7. Federal grants: Federal grants also come with strings attached. Would you support a review of all TPS federal grants to determine whether the benefit of the grant is greater than the cost of compliance and loss of control?

Completely, top to bottom.

8. Oversight and accountability: As a member of the Tulsa School Board, you would be part of the Legislative Branch of school government, with a duty to act as a check and balance on the Executive Branch: Superintendent Gist and her administration. What recent actions or policies of the Superintendent and her administration have received strong pushback from the School Board? On what sorts of issues would you, as a School Board member, seek to exercise oversight of the TPS administration?

I do not view the current composition of the School Board as effective in their oversight role and will seek to be a leader in this area. I do not see strong pushback on any issue and, instead, see a whole lot of acquiescence. This is shameful behavior by those elected to represent the stakeholders of TPS who are clearly dissatisfied with the status quo. For the second part of the question, and at the risk of answering a question with a question, is there an issue where I wouldn't seek to exercise oversight? This is the most essential role of a board member. I will elevate the role of board members by using the oversight tools provided to us under the law. I intend to take an activist approach to governance and look forward to sharing my findings and thoughts widely.

Feel free to add any information that you'd like to pass along to the voters:

I'd like to share my top 5 priorities (basically in order) as a board member to illustrate the type of board member I would be.

1) Update the Oklahoma Education Funding Formula: This formula, which divides state appropriate funds for common education among our 537 school districts, was last updated in 1996. It is woefully, negligently out of date. It fails to address the needs of today's students and puts urban districts like TPS at a distinct disadvantage based on the makeup of our student population. Until we fix the formula, it does little good to demand more education dollars from the state because we are consistently short-changed. I will prevail upon my relationships in the legislative and executive branches of state government to achieve this goal. Our board members should be a presence at the Capitol and I will enjoy fighting for our families in my role as a board member

2) Review, audit, and adjust third party contracts: TPS has hundreds of third-party contracts totaling tens of millions of dollars. The largest of which is with Sodexo for cafeteria services. I made an information request of TPS asking for all of the contracts, their amount, length, and purpose. I was told that this information was not tracked. This is totally unacceptable. The board must take a closer look at these contracts to see if a) outsourcing these services is cost effective b) are the requirements of the contracts met or exceeded and c) which contracts should be terminated.

3) School safety: TPS campus police and the Tulsa Police Department's SOT team should evaluate each school site for weaknesses and develop plans to keep our children safe. This has not occurred and is outrageous. Additionally, TPS campus police, TPD, and the City of Tulsa traffic engineer should evaluate the traffic patterns around each campus to ensure student safety. Many of our schools front major traffic arteries and a single crossing guard just doesn't cut it as the only line of defense to keep our children safe.

4) Seed money for PTAs: We know that active parental involvement is a key driver of academic success and support in our schools. While we have many fantastic PTA organizations at TPS schools sites, many schools have no PTA or inactive PTA organizations. Often, finances are the barrier to effective and engaged PTAs. Some schools don't even have sufficient funds to host a coffee or pizza night in order to sign up classroom parents. We should invest seed money to restart inactive PTAs and establish PTAs where none exists. We can do this through our foundation or through philanthropic partners with a relatively small amount of money. This is a small line-item investment that has the potential to pay huge dividends to our students. The ROI here is, essentially, limitless.

5) Review of special programs: TPS supports a variety of academic programs beyond traditional courses of study like reading, math, social studies, and science. We need to evaluate these programs for academic success and invest more in the programs that show results and discontinue those that aren't working.