APS School Board Member David Peercy is fond of the existing language.

The existing Employee Standards of Conduct read as follows;

G.14 EMPLOYEE STANDARDS OF CONDUCT

Employees of the Albuquerque Public Schools shall serve as positive role models for students and set good examples in conduct, manners, dress and grooming. APS expects each employee to maintain the highest standards of conduct and act in a mature and responsible manner at all times. Employees must not engage in activities which violate federal, state or local laws or which, in any way, diminish the integrity, efficiency or discipline of the District.

The part of that language that he is most fond of, is;

"APS expects each employee to maintain the highest standards of conduct ..."

He thinks that language is better than;

In no case shall the standards of conduct for an adult,
be lower than the standards of conduct for students.

because, he would have you believe,
there are higher standards of conduct than
the Student Standards of Conduct, and
he would rather be accountable to them instead.

The Standards of Conduct for students are
the Pillars of Character Counts!; a nationally recognized,
accepted and respected code of ethics.

David Peercy cannot expect to hold employees accountable
to a higher standard of conduct than the Pillars of Character
Counts! for one simple reason; there is no such thing.

There are no higher standards of conduct than ethical standards of conduct.

There are "legal" standards, which represent the lowest
standards of acceptable conduct. And then there are "ethical"
standards, which represent the highest standards of conduct.
There are no standards of conduct that are higher than ethical
standards.

David Peercy would have you believe that he is rejecting
accountability as a role model of the Pillars of Character
Counts!, simply because he is in favor of "higher standards
of conduct" than the Student Standards of Conduct.
And, that he would actually be held accountable to those
higher standards, by language which reads;

"APS expects each employee to maintain the highest standards of conduct ..."

There is a world of difference between "maintaining"
standards, and actually being accountable to them.

His rejection of accountability as a role model of the
Student Standards of Conduct, is on its face,
rejection of accountability to "the highest standards of conduct".

This whole exercise is about David Peercy,
trying to except himself from accountability
as a role model of he Student Standards of Conduct;
the highest possible standards of conduct.

This whole exercise is about
David Peercy, refusing to;

in no case, hold himself accountable
to lower standards of conduct than
students.

It is in fact, precisely what he is doing.



There is a simple test;
I would invite anyone, but especially David Peercy or
any other member of the leadership of the APS,
to point to even one single example anywhere in APS Policies,
Procedures, Procedural Directives, Rules or Regulations
that references a higher standard of conduct than the
Student Standards of Conduct.

I would invite them to point even one single example anywhere
in APS Policies, Procedures, Procedural Directives,
Rules or Regulations that references a standard of conduct
that is even equal to the Pillars of Character Counts!

Further, I would invite any of the aforementioned to point to
anywhere in the entire APS, where there is honest
accountability to any standard of conduct higher than the law.

The School Board's own recently adopted Code of Ethics,
does not even use the word "ethical" anywhere but in the title.

Their own Code of Ethics is; by their own free admission,
absolutely unenforceable.

Not because it can't be made enforceable, but because
they don't want it to be enforceable.

cc Peercy upon posting



photo Mark Bralley