Mount Diablo Unified School District

If you are a parent you already know they have "issues".

• Mt. Diablo schools admit budget errors
• Mt. Diablo benefits fall victim to budget

If you've been to a board meeting (to voice your opinion) you probably came away disappointed. So what's a Concerned Parent to do?

If you read the Clayton Pioneer yesterday, the answer was front page news!

Catherine Myers, a concerned parent (who happens to also be a busy Real Estate Agent for Alain Pinel and a Blogger), somehow found the free time to organize an informal meeting. She managed to bring together some of the Board Members and 50 or so Parents.

From the article:

"On April 12, a group of almost 50 parents and teachers informally met with MDUSD board members Paul Strange and Gary Eberhart at Rocco's in Walnut Creek. The purpose of the meeting was to allow parents to ask questions of the two board members. Earlier in the year, the two called for the resignation of Superintendent Gary McHenry. They believe that public confidence needed to be addressed and was not being handled properly at the district-sponsored community meetings."

The meeting had been arranged by Clayton parent Catherine Myers as a way for parents to avoid the sense of defensiveness they had felt at the district meetings - which they believed did not allow for a casual exchange.

"There are serious fiscal concerns," she said. "There appears to be a culture of non-cooperation and low morale that needs to be addressed."

The meeting, scheduled to last 90 minutes, wound up lasting almost 3 1/2 hours. A few parents had questions answered for an additional 45 minutes.

When one of the Board Members comes away from a 3 hour grilling and says something like this...

"the best meeting I have ever been involved with," Eberhart called it "a community forum in its purest form. It felt good to listen to the questions and give answers."

You know you did something right! Great Job Catherine!

If you missed the last meeting - you have another chance!

"This Saturday (4/26), with two of the other three board members we've not heard from yet in an informal forum. April Treece and Dick Allen will be at Rocco's starting at 9:30am to answer questions, and certainly I'd like to know their take on last night's exchange. You can see more info on this and other meetings and information at http://mdusdparents.blogspot.com"

Be a part of the solution - I'll see you on Saturday!