Casey Miller

• President/Commissioner/Coach -- Evanston Baseball and Softball Association
• Coach, AYSO
• Member/President, City of Evanston Board of Ethics

In both my professional life, which includes wide experience formulating public policy in Congress,  and in my volunteer work, I have shown an ability to bridge disagreements, to build consensus and to work towards practical solutions.  I have faced difficult adversaries and dealt with contentious issues.  But whatever the outcome of a particular issue, I always tried to maintain the respect of my opponents and the ability to work together on future issues.  Bad ideas are not necessarily the result of  bad motives.  Perhaps not incidentally, I have been fortunate to work for extraordinarily smart people who reminded me regularly that I can learn a lot from others.

My objective is to ensure that each individual child, whatever his or her background, has the opportunity to approach his or her potential as a student.  As a consequence, I view my "support base" to be each individual parent, on behalf of their children.  I do not consider access to educational excellence or resources as a spoils system.  Pitting groups against each other in a competition for access to educational success seems pessimistic and unnecessarily divisive.  I do not accept the notion that there will be winners and losers, hence constituencies to be courted or marginalized.  To the extent that I would advocate on behalf of any group, it would be for those students who have been marginalized, are without any advocates, have been overlooked in the discussion of "Excellence" and who are in danger of dropping out entirely.

I am running for the 202 Board because I believe ETHS is the place where I can have maximum impact on the well-being of Evanston.  Everyone in town has a stake in the school's success.  Education is not the only answer to our challenges, but the health of ETHS is crucial to the health of the community.  Someone who votes for me can expect me to be open-minded, non-ideological and realistic.  I try to approach problems analytically, not emotionally.  I have learned that I do not have a monopoly on good ideas.  I believe in the value of rational, robust debate because (a) it forces me to listen carefully and (b) it forces me to test my own assumptions and arguments.  I'm not afraid to admit I am wrong or to change my mind.  I will try to bring the same analytical approach to every issue that confronts the board.  I am not on a crusade or mission on behalf of one single issue or any particular point , other than the notion that a public high school has a moral and legal obligation to educate every child to that child's potential.

The problem with Education in Evanston is that too many of our students fail to graduate from high school and too many of those who do lack the skills to succeed in the world.  Demonstrably and without question, ETHS does an exceptional job of educating a segment of the student population.  There is nothing wrong with the "educational system" for these students.  There are many reasons why other students fail to reach their potential; no high school can address all of these issues.  BUT…educators, especially those at a public high school, have an obligation to address matters they can control.  The Board has to encourage educators to be bold, give them the resources and support necessary to implement their plans and hold them accountable for success.  And if they fail, they must be required to try something new.

 Dr. Witherspoon's performance criteria already exist, at a minimum in the goals listed on the ETHS website.   A decision to extend his contract will depend largely on an evaluation of his success in achieving those goals.  Hiring a new superintendent would require additional criteria.  There are various aspects to a superintendent's work: personal qualities, relationships with the board, community relationships, staff and personnel relationships, educational leadership, and business and finance.  Any candidate would have to have impeccable credentials in these areas.  Furthermore, a candidate should probably have previous experience as a superintendent of a district at least as large as ETHS and with similar educational challenges.  Candidates must accept the singular role of ETHS in the community.  S/he is not just an administrator but also the inspirational leader of the school in the community.  Candidates must be committed to serving the whole population and elevating the achievement of all students.  I believe it is in the interest of ETHS to hire superintendents for multi-year terms.  With respect to specific goals on which the superintendent will be evaluated, these goals must be specific and linked to ETHS's mission, measurable, realistic, concrete (not aspirations, but outcomes) and subject to deadlines.

We are fortunate to live in a community that values and funds education.  Because of community generosity, ETHS has many of the attributes necessary to academic achievement (such as smaller class sizes, resources for tutoring and training and so forth).  ETHS is also able to address many of the extraordinary impediments to achievement, challenges many other school districts do not face.   In the current fiscal climate, however, when state and federal support are continually in question, when extraordinary threats such as the pension shift pose a danger to local budgets, it is more important than ever to impose rigorous financial controls on all spending.  Expenses cannot be allowed to rise at a rate higher than the increase in funding, and property taxes cannot continue to rise indefinitely.  All spending must be measured against the benefit it delivers to students in the classroom.  

This question deals principally with the changes in the freshman curriculum since the junior and senior curricula are organized around an ever-expanding AP curriculum.  I would first distinguish two issues:  "earned honors" and "differentiation" or "de-tracking."  I favor "earned honors" regardless of the class make-up.  The "honors" designation and attendant grade bonus should reflect actual mastery of the subject matter.  They should be a result of achievement, not participation.  I am agnostic about the merits of "de-tracking."  That is, I don't know if the new system in Freshman Humanities/Biology will produce the sought-after improvement for all students.  Though I believe the community was poorly educated about the new curriculum, I believe the changes were a product of a sincere desire to increase student performance, not a result of ideological axe-grinding.  I hope the changes are successful, because I support the goal of higher achievement for all students.  But if the curriculum does not succeed, I will not hesitate to demand a different approach.  My judgment of success will not be based on anecdote, ideology or notions of privilege.  Finally, regarding the  sophomore curriculum:  IF the goal is to prepare all students to succeed in AP courses, it makes sense to align the sophomore curriculum to  achieve that goal.  I would nevertheless prefer to defer any changes until we have evidence about the success of the changes in the freshman curriculum.

The pension obligation is not the only ticking time bomb, but it is the most visible.  Fortunately, or not, the breadth of the impact should help ensure a more equitable solution.  No one can predict what the "remedy" will look like or what the exact obligations will be.  ETHS must work with state legislators to shape that solution, to seek alternatives that do not shift the obligation in ways that affect classroom instruction.  If a shift does occur, ETHS should work to see that it has more than just a continuing financial obligation; it must seek control over its administration. Because of its overall fiscal health, ETHS is in a better position than many.  It goes without saying that cuts  should be kept as far from the classroom as possible.  But the size of the obligation in a direct shift, without any amelioration, virtually ensures that there will be no painless solution.