 |
| Huntsville City School Board President, Laurie McCaulley |
Dr. Dawson was known as a fighter for justice and equality. He boasted of being "Unbought and Unbossed" by special interest. Unfortunately for the students and parents in District 1, I can't say the same about his successor, who goes along to get along, often at the expense of the people she was elected to represent.
Dr. Dawson would never have allowed non-certified Teach for America teachers to replace certified teachers in Title 1 ( predominately African American) Schools, in order to circumvent the Alabama Education Association, with a 1.9 million dollar no bid contract.
Dr. Dawson would never have allowed the students (black) in his district be mandated to wear uniforms while other students (white) were not.
Dr. Dawson would never have allowed the board to close the Fletcher Seldon Alternative school and outsource the program to a heavy-handed, private, drug and behavioral treatment center, with no accountability, or oversight, where parents don't even know about the program until it's too late to protest. Nor, are they aware their students get no legal representation.
Dr. Dawson never would have allowed Teachers, Administrators, and most importantly, the public, to be harassed and intimidated at public board meetings, then hide behind the letter of the law. When it's convenient that is.
Dr. Dawson would never have allowed the board to replace textbooks with laptop computers without making sure all students had access to the Internet, their online safety protected, and without weighing the possible negative effects, because saving money is more important all of a sudden.
The School Board named an old school with 300 black students after Dr. Dawson, but they should have renamed the new Lee High School after him. But no, they would rather keep the name of the Confederate General who fought against everything Dr. Dawson stood for.
 |
| RIP Dr. Dawson, you are missed more than you will ever know. |
A Ripple in the Water
Who Defines "the Civil Rights Issue of Our Time?
2 comments:
I worked with James Dawson for years. He was that very rare individual: fair, honest, and principled. It was clear why he was on the Board. He was reliable and he respected his constituents. I can't see why the ones we have now bothered to campaign or show up.
He must be spinning in his grave, as the saying goes.
McCaulley started this year tentatively asking some questions, like why she would drive past closed and empty schools in the late afternoon and early evenings and see kids unattended dumped there by buses. But for heaven's sake, woman, you are ON THE BOARD. You don't ask questions, you DEMAND answers, and if you see a problem, YOU FIX IT.
Then she shut up altogether, got with the program, joined the gang.
Two roads diverged in the wood.
She took the well-traveled one.
Not Dawson's choice. He taught me a lot. I miss him too.
McCaulley is who the status quo want to represent District 1 because as you can see, she is the exact opposite of Dr. Dawson.
"Then she shut up altogether, got with the program, joined the gang.
Two roads diverged in the wood.
She took the well-traveled one."
Post a Comment