At the July 21 Howell K-8 School District Board of Education meeting, board member Tim O’Brien was proposing that the board look at making internal operating improvements and he suggested that the board form a brainstorming committee to develop ways to improve internal infrastructure and efficiencies, and eliminate waste.
The board president, Mary Cerretani, responded, “We don’t need to get a committee together. That’s why we have administrators.”
Ms. Cerretani is talking about the superintendent of schools (administrator) Dr. Enid Golden.
Tim O’Brien is a visionary and progressive leader who is sincere about creating a better Howell school system and Ms. Cerretani put a major brick wall in the way of any progress for improvements in Howell.
Later that evening, Mr. O’Brien tried again to propose that the board do something to improve operations and, hopefully, help the taxpayers.
Mr. O’Brien made reference to a business set of tools called “lean” (also know as Six Sigma) in which small teams focus on inefficiencies, quality problems, and operations where improvements can be made.
Lean is well-documented as having the ability to dramatically improve services, substantially reduce operating costs and the need for capital spending and create a very flexible organization. Lean enables any operation to do much more, with much less. Lean is being used by the military, healthcare industry, education organizations and various manufacturing industries.
Like Ms. Cerretani, Dr. Golden put up another brick wall to progress by replying to Mr. O’Brien that she has researched lean and thinks it is something that would be appropriate for General Motors.
What we have in Howell are two leaders who think “status quo” is the goal and there is no opportunity for improving the Howell school operation that might help reduce the annual rate of tax growth. Both Ms. Cerretani and Dr. Golden have closed minds and are not what the citizens and taxpayers of Howell deserve.
Dr. Golden especially has shown poor performance and respect for the community. We have rejected 13 of the last 15 school budgets submitted by her office, and she had responded to our “no” vote with a proposal of 16 cuts in this year’s budget that were directly aimed at the instructional teachers, students, families in need and even the eighth grade graduating class. She only offered a token cut in her own administration.
Her performance has also been noted by the Howell Township Council. At the July 19 council meeting Deputy Mayor Angela Dalton called Dr. Golden’s attempt to eliminate courtesy busing a “sad attempt to pull one over on the people of the township.”
Cutting courtesy busing would have forced the township to fund $860,000 to supply crossing guards as a safety measure, resulting in a higher municipal tax increase. Additionally, Councilwoman Pauline Smith said the school administration had “lost credibility” with taxpayers over the matter.
Dr. Golden has received 13 years of “no confidence” votes, delivered substandard fiscal management performance and her attempts to “pull one over on the taxpayers” is an indication that it is time for changes in the Howell school administration. Howell deserves progressive leadership, not status quo administrators.
Sal Runfola
Howell