Let Cape administrators do their jobs

The Cape Henlopen School District Board of Education has been going round and round on starting times for elementary and secondary schools. The issue is being driven by state school-­transportation issues. The state pays for the bulk of student transportation, including funding of buses, and the state is facing tough budget times.

It’s telling Cape that it needs to use more of its buses for double runs. Cape currently contracts with 58 buses. Six of those make double runs. It’s a matter of dollars and cents, and the state wants more for its dollars and cents.

Parents, dealing with their own household and family schedules, understandably have concerns about starting times and have voiced those concerns to board members. And it’s understandable that legislators who hear about those concerns from constituents might also want to jump into the fray with the school board members. But when those voices begin eclipsing the voices of the administrators, there’s a problem.

Cape Henlopen School District hires professionals to administer its schools, and pays them well in salaries and benefits. It’s their job to assess and evaluate issues like school starting times and make recommendations which in their professional opinions will best serve the children and families of the district.

They know the state’s concerns. They deal with state educational officials weekly. They also know parental concerns. Many are parents themselves, and they have hundreds of colleagues in the teaching and staffing ranks who serve as constant sounding boards.

Board members and legislators need not duplicate the administrators’ efforts. The board’s charge should be, “Bring us your recommendations and we will vote on them.” If the vote is affirmative, the administration can then implement, monitor, tweak as necessary and report to the board on how it is going.

If the vote is in the negative, the board should then ask the administration to come back with another properly vetted and presented recommendation to be considered for a vote. Then the board should act, as the policy makers they are elected to be.

Let the administrators do the jobs they’re trained for, hired for and paid for.