Utah should streamline educational governance

Andy Grove, former chairman of Intel, said it well, "If you are not paranoid, you are out of business." That was his advice to business leaders who wanted to stay competitive when massive change occurs. It's advice our state elected leaders would do well to consider as they wrestle with trying to fix an archaic educational system.

It's advice successful companies have taken in restructuring their organizations to meet the needs of today's era of globalization. They quickly downsized, resized and reinvented themselves. They became lean, high-performance organizations that transformed their workplace from one rewarding loyalty and driven by process to one that is market driven.

Utah state lawmakers now find themselves frustrated in trying to prepare students with a world-class education while dealing with a bloated education governance structure. It is burdened with layers of bureaucracies, so responsibility is diffused and the status quo protected by people in the system, the "stakeholders" — state and local school boards, bureaucrats and their protectors. Missing are the parents and taxpayers, the real "stakeholders."

State and local school board members are quick to call for local control but abdicate controversial decisions to lawmakers; yet, average citizens can't name their school board representative. And, when parents try to get an answer at a school board meeting, they are given two minutes and then dismissed without ever receiving an answer. Parents, however, are not being singled out because lawmakers are given the same treatment.

The challenge lawmakers have in reforming education is to do what today's successful businesses had to do, streamline their organizations so they can meet the current market demands and build in flexibility to respond to an unknown future. The current system sets up the applicable parties for failure and conflict, where responsibility is diffused among the system so that no one can be held accountable for results. Furthermore, dedicated administrators have to answer to many bosses who often demand or give different directions. Change will require eliminating or redefining the role of school boards and defining who is responsible for assuring the legislative intent of policies is carried out.