WE NEED TERM LIMITS

By Paul E Crost

School board members should be subject to term limits as are other elected officials in Long Beach and the state.

When a term limits proposal was made, it was defeated by the current Board majority. I believe they have come to view their seats on the Board as an honorarium that they have earned by reason of their prior service as administrators or Board members. The problem with their approach is that the absence of term limits has prevented fresh ideas from entering the Board room.

As is often the case with corporate boards of directors, when school board members fail to actively question and oversee the administration the result can be waste, inefficiency, and, potentially unchecked misconduct. Enron, Worldcom and Tyco are just a few recent examples of corporate directors claiming that they trusted the CEO's after their misconduct came to light.

Long Beach deserves an energized Board member who will ask the right questions, will not go along just because that's the easiest path, and will say "No" when that needs to be said. As a Board member I will be looking for new ideas from all sources, from parents, teachers, staff, and the community, and will not assume that all wisdom must come from the District office.