Greeson: Welcome Mr. Superintendent; Let's fix this

Members of the public listen as Hamilton County Schools superintendent candidate Dr. Bryan Johnson speaks during a meet-and-greet in the Board of Education meeting room on Thursday, June 8, 2017, in Chattanooga, Tenn. Dr. Johnson is the fourth of five candidates to interview for the position.
Members of the public listen as Hamilton County Schools superintendent candidate Dr. Bryan Johnson speaks during a meet-and-greet in the Board of Education meeting room on Thursday, June 8, 2017, in Chattanooga, Tenn. Dr. Johnson is the fourth of five candidates to interview for the position.

Today, the Hamilton County Board of Education is expected to name a new superintendent.

You may know this. It's made most of recent weeks' newspapers and TV news.

Today, the school board will make the most important decision it will ever make; it's the most high-profile decision this board likely will ever make.

You can make an argument it could be the most controversial decision it will ever make, if board members decide that roughly four years of eye-popping struggles mean turning to an internal candidate.

That, for the most part, is our well-documented past.

This day, however, is for the hope for a better future.

The school board has worked diligently, spent wisely on the superintendent search, and managed to march on as this front-runner or that contender bowed out of the process.

So this morning, as we await tonight's decision, should be about moving forward and rolling up our sleeves to fix what is the most far-reaching challenge Hamilton County faces.

Simply put: This decision - the most important, visible and potentially controversial - is nowhere close to the most difficult ones on the horizon.

More simply put for the next superintendent: Now that you have the job, please know that landing the job is way easier than completing the job.

Our system is in turmoil. To wit:

Our test scores at too many schools, especially given the investment and attention poured into them, will make your eyes water.

Our literacy rates will make you sad.

Our desperate need for renewed trust - between the system and the public, between the school board and county commission, between Bonny Oaks and the school board, between the teachers and the leadership - will make your head hurt.

Our future enrollment numbers - with the possibility of some schools coming under state control, of municipalities wanting to break away, of the impact of a new all-boys' charter school, of the large impact of private schools here - will make you fear the worst.

Our inability to address the fact that we should consider closing and consolidating schools and figure out a way to better maximize our resources will keep you up at night.

You have a tough task.

But not all of the news is bad.

In fact, here's one simple fact that will make you smile and will offer you hope:

Everyone wants you to succeed.

Everyone.

Start with Hamilton County Mayor Jim Coppinger, who knows schools are our biggest investment. Sooner rather than later, Coppinger, who was educated in the Hamilton County public school system, will figure out a way to address the capital and operating needs your system faces. And with the support of Commissioners Greg Beck and Joe Graham and a more-willing-to-listen county commission, I believe creative funding answers will become a reality in the next couple of fiscal cycles.

We've also got the supremely supportive folks at UnifiED, Chattanooga 2.0 and civic groups that are well aware that the only lagging part of our community's complete revitalization is our public schools. Use them. Remember what Truman once said, "It's amazing what you can accomplish when you do not care who gets the credit."

Then there are the hundreds of employees, the thousands of teachers and the tens of thousands of students who truly hope you are the hero we need.

It's a tall order, for sure. But we're with you.

Congratulations.

Now let's get to work.

Contact Jay Greeson at jgreeson@timesfreepress.com and 423-757-6343.

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