On Thursday, July 24th, the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board will consider 5 reapportionment plans, all of which propose to reduce the size of our school board, thereby enlarging individual districts. (The 7-member plan would create districts comparable in size to a state House district.) Increasing the size of the districts would not make the school board more efficient. It would undermine the local democratic control of our public schools, undermine school board members’ ability to effectively serve their constituents, and dilute minority representation. Please vote against the proposed reapportionment plans and protect the local democratic control of our schools!
Why is this important?
We cannot create an effective school board by undermining the local democratic control of our schools. Moreover, the proposed school board reduction:
--Is not supported by a thorough review of business principles or typical business practices
--Is not supported by practices of other school districts in Louisiana
--Not one proposal reapportions the districts in line with the racial make-up of our school district
--Has not been pre-screened by the Justice Department and leaves the school district vulnerable to legal challenges
â—¦ NAACP released statement of opposition
--Increases the number of constituents each school board member must serve
--Privileges candidates with more personal wealth or ability to garner support from wealthy contributors
--Alters current map less than one month before candidates must qualify
