Letter to the Governor

I will preface this by saying, if I had the ear of Governor-Elect Greg Abbott (today) this is what I’d say. In a year, who knows what I’ll be thinking….

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Governor-Elect Abbot,

I am an educator in Fort Worth Independent School District, a doctoral student at Texas Christian University, and a concerned citizen. I have come to learn, that the issues in our education system have nothing to do with curriculum, accountability, or school choice. Daily, schools are contending with the symptoms of a disease that infects every facet of society. This sickness is not unique to education at all; it plagues health care, the economy, and general welfare. The true problem of education is poverty.

Governor-Elect, imagine being one of the 1.9 million children walking into school hungry because it’s the end of the month and your family is out of food stamps. Imagine being made fun of for wearing the same clothes every day—because they are the only clothes you have. Imagine going to a home with no father, because your dad thought the only way he could support and protect his family was by selling narcotics in your neighborhood – it went bad. Imagine being one of the 95,000 children in Texas that have no home to go to when the bell rings at the end of the day. Put yourself in the mindset of these children and then try to learn Algebra 1.

These problems are not unique to Texas, in fact other nations and states are finding solutions. Take for example the Bolsa Familia in Brazil. The Bolsa Familia is a direct cash transfer program that supports poor Brazilian families. The Brazilian government grants cash to families on the condition that their children are vaccinated and attend school. All of a sudden, students are seeing a relief in poverty and watching their parents place a high value on their schooling. As a result, poverty is dropping and girls, who were previously under educated, are beginning to attend school in greater numbers. Governor-elect, I implore you to look beyond the partisan noise and study the facts. Reducing the stress of poverty helps kids.

Governor-elect, if this example seems to extreme or distant, let’s look to our own backyard. Ask yourself why Breakthrough, Boys and Girls Club, Communities in Schools, Upward Bound, Headstart, Homeless Shelters, Need-based Scholarships, Pell Grants, LULAC, NAACP and so many other institutions exist. Why is there a non-profit office on nearly every corner in our state capitol? What are all of these Good Samaritans trying to accomplish? Individually their goals are varied: they try to help kids improve academically and socially, they try to give voice to the voiceless, they try to grant money for academic results, they try to provide shelter and food to those in need, and they try to fill in the gaps for people from every walk of life. But collectively, each and every one of these organizations is working to circumvent the true issues of poverty. They are working around the mess that poverty created.

Then, the question becomes, “what would I have you to do?” Governor-elect, why can’t we just cut to the chase? Fifty years after President Lyndon B. Johnson, a Texas native, declared War on Poverty the battle rages on. In our state, over 4.5 million people live in poverty according to the most recent census. You and I both know the poverty level guidelines are in desperate need of adjustment, when millions of Texans are also members of the “working poor”. Can we stand together and put a stop to poverty? Can we raise the minimum wage? Can we commit to direct cash transfers for our neediest families? Can we commit to providing job training for our citizens?

This is no socialist plot – it is business. If we want drastically different outcomes in education we must change our inputs. But, how? Public schools cannot choose their clientele, nor should they; we must serve all students. If we cannot, exclude students, then we must refine the situations of the students that we do take. We must take away the crippling sting of poverty so our students are truly free to focus on school and excel. If we can treat kids and families better then we can expect more from our students academically.

Governor-elect Abbot, until we are serious about poverty, we will always be “A Nation at Risk”. The voices of opposition come from those that benefit most from the status quo. Please take a stand for poor families across our great state that don’t have the means to do it for themselves.

Thank you,

Trevon R. Jones

Thoughts on “Leadership on the Line”

Finding True North…

This is going to sound very strange, especially coming after a rather long-winded post about the experiences that led me to this place in life, but I am bewildered about what I stand for and what I believe. It’s not that I’ve never known – in fact, I have often known all the answers – but, in my old age (haha) I don’t know exactly where I’m headed anymore….

In class on Saturday, Dr. Johnson challenged the class to articulate for themselves their core values. By doing this, she believed that we would know “true north” or a general guiding principle in our decision making. This ran in tandem with “Leadership on the Line”. In Chapter 9, “Anchor Yourself”, the authors argue “the self relies on our capacity to witness and learn throughout our lives, to refine the core values that orient our decisions,” (pg 430). I too believe this process is essential, but my loyalty to the theory brings me no closer to knowing myself.

Before beginning to teach and go to graduate school I knew exactly what I wanted to do. I knew how long I would teach. I knew what year I would become a principal. I knew what my first moves as a superintendent would be. I had it figured out. I legitimately believed in my plan and I was certain that with a few good ideas and a healthy serving of FTK, I could do what was required to serve all students.But, on Saturday, after class discussion, I immediately scurried off to Trinity Trails to get some time alone. I realized, for the first time in years, I am unsure of my direction.

After a year and a half of teaching and going to graduate school, I am further from knowing my path than I have been in a really long time. I don’t really know what I believe is essential for a high functioning district – or a classroom for that matter. Today, I spent an entire class periods talking to my department head about how to get kids to engage in higher-level thinking. I did the same last night with my learning network specialist. I am more lost than I’ve ever been.

But I think that’s a good thing….

Now more than ever, I understand the levity of the task I hope to take on one day. I want to lead schools and that’s a big freaking deal. So I’ll be lost for a little while and uncomfortable for a long while, because I can’t stop working to figure out what is right for the kids.

I’ll be sure to post when I figure it out though!