jon@dmcityview.com

The only thing more appalling than the high school absentee numbers released by the Des Moines Public School District last week was the fact that the problem will be dealt with privately. No public input for the public school problem. The Feb. 23 focus groups, according to the district, are "invitation only, intended to get honest feedback from stakeholders." Read: "If you're critical of how badly we're failing and won't tell us what we want to hear and won't partake in a big group hug, you're not welcome." And while I have tried to get behind this board, this system, and think that some of the individuals who are critical of both tend to go overboard from time to time, this was a real eye-opener.

And like the five structures slated for razing by DMPS because of its pie-in-the-sky penny-tax projections, it is time to start discussing the same for this undeniably broken structure - publicly. Because what we have now is simply not doing the trick. People are feeling misled, and with good reason.

A few months back I wrote in this column that the DMPS had an image problem that could be fixed by telling its success stories. Now, though, I see I was wrong.

Coming up a couple hundred million short and screwing over the poor, black kids whose schools will not only fail to get face-lifts but also perhaps be bulldozed, while the white kids who live South of Grand are living large at Hubbell and Hanawalt is one thing; telling parents and taxpayers they are not welcome at discussions that involve their children and their money is quite another. "Invitation only" is for receptions at Glen Oaks, and focus groups for figuring out educational problems are for private schools. The word "public" means "relating to or concerning people as a whole or all members of a community," according to Webster's. And the Des Moines Public School Board flipping this on its ear should outrage you.

Never mind that absentee issues don't affect everyone, this board has proven time and time again that if you give it an inch, those involved will take a mile. A private meeting on the subject of absenteeism will undoubtedly lead the way to private meetings about other school issues. It's bad precedent. It's a ball you simply can't get rolling.

If this district is ever to repair its reputation (which is unlikely with the group of so-called leaders assembled) it will need to be done using careful consideration with regard to the wishes of parents from each and every one of our neighborhoods concerning each and every issue. And it will have to be done openly, putting the "public" back in public schools.

This school board and our top school officials are, quite obviously, not to be trusted; and for individuals charged with the wellbeing and education of our city's children, that's not a good position to be in. Some call the board's members all sorts of nasty names. However, one thing that our school board and top school officials have always been undeniably guilty of is appearing guilty. Now, though, they'd rather not even leave it open for debate.

Quite obviously those who challenge the board and its decisions have gotten to them, and the board doesn't want the headaches that accompany an open, and likely ugly, discussion about how they are falling short yet again. But that doesn't give them the right to reinvent the process - no matter the subject matter. "Honest feedback from stakeholders"? Don't we all have something at stake? I mean, even if it's not your child hitting the bong and then hanging out in the McDonald's parking lot all morning, eventually he or she is going to be your problem, too. And thus, your voice should, at the very least, be guaranteed the opportunity to be heard - something that cannot be accomplished if it's "invitation only."

On Feb. 23 from 3 to 4:30 p.m. at Lincoln and East high schools the Des Moines School District is planning on holding secret focus groups and you are not invited. But if you care about your kids and your money and seeing to it that public officials behave in the best interest of both, you'll show up anyway. This issue belongs to all of us, whether the school board likes it or not. CV

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