APS School Board; Their Character, Their Courage

The Albuquerque Public Schools Board of Education will meet this afternoon. On their agenda; lowering standards of conduct for students and their senior-most adult role models.

Current school board policy reads; students are expected to “model and promote (honest accountability to) the Pillars of Character Counts!”; a nationally recognized, accepted and respected code of ethical conduct.

When they strike that language this afternoon, student standards of conduct will be lowered. So will the standards of conduct for their adult role models; in particular school board members and senior administrators. They are lowering their own standards of conduct.

Were that act not indicative of a lack of character and courage, the fact that they won’t do it in public is.

The soon to be “former” student standards of conduct require;

Truthfulness. Truthfulness is presenting the facts to the best of our knowledge. Intent is the crucial distinction between truthfulness and truth itself. Being wrong is not the same thing as lying, although honest mistakes can still damage trust insofar as they may show sloppy judgment.

Sincerity. Sincerity is genuineness, being without trickery or duplicity. It precludes all acts, including half-truths, out-of-context statements, and even silence, that are intended to create beliefs or leave impressions that are untrue or misleading.

Candor. In relationships involving legitimate expectations of trust, honesty may also require candor, forthrightness and frankness, imposing the obligation to volunteer information that another person needs to know.

The APS School Board’s intention to remove candor, forthrightness and honesty from their own standards of conduct suggests a lack of character and courage.

Their interest in doing it in the shadows, cements it.

The Alb. Journal's relentless refusal to investigate and report upon ethics, standards, accountability and role modeling in the leadership of the APS, suggests that they are complicit in an ongoing coverup.

Their failure to report tomorrow,
on what happens this afternoon,
will cement it.