Confucius averred; To see the right and not to do it is cowardice.

I have written and stated on a number of occasions, that there are only two reasons why the leadership of the APS is not accountable to the same higher standards of conduct as students; their lack of character and or, their lack of courage; individually and collectively.

The leadership of the APS hates to hear that.

In particular they hate to hear it from the podium of a public forum at a regular school board meeting.

I keep asking them for any other good and ethical justification for their refusal to restore the role modeling clause in their own standards of conduct, link.

I keep asking them to explain in words that students can understand, why students are expected to model and promote the Pillars of Character Counts! and their adult role models are not.

The leadership of the APS is yet to offer the reason they removed the role modeling clause from their own standards of conduct and will not put it back.  They steadfastly refuse to discuss openly and honestly and publicly; whether they will ever put it back.

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

If it is not their lack of courage and or their lack of character,
individually and collectively, what is it exactly, that prevents them from stepping up to actual honest accountability as role models?

What other reason keeps the leadership of the APS from holding themselves actually, honestly accountable to the same standards of conduct they establish and enforce on students?

Students, according to school board policy, are expected to model and promote the Pillars of Character Counts! link, a nationally recognized, accepted and respected code of ethical conduct.

To model and promote standards of conduct means; actual, honest accountability to those standards.  Whatever the students standards are, whatever the adult standards are, the standards of conduct for the adult role models cannot be lower than the standards for students.

The board has two choices.  If they want to end the manifest hypocrisy of their expectation that students will hold themselves accountable to higher standards of conduct than they are willing to bear themselves;

1.  they can raise their own standards of conduct up to the standards they establish and enforce upon students, or

2.  they can lower the student standards until they are low enough that their adult role models can finally summon the character and the courage to hold themselves actually honestly accountable as role models of accountability to those standards.

There are two reasons why the "credentialed" press will not investigate and report upon the ethics and accountability scandal in the leadership of the APS

1.  they lack the character and or

2.  they lack the courage.

If any one can think of a good and ethical justification for the abdication en masse of the entire leadership of the APS as senior most role models of student standards of conduct,

if any one can think of a good and ethical justification for Kent Walz and the Journal's abject failure to honor their obligation to investigate and report upon standards and accountability in the leadership of the APS, good or bad,

I would be more than happy to publish them.

I would be happier still, if people showed up at the next regular school board meeting, stood up at the public forum and asked for a candid, forthright and honest accounting of standards and accountability in the leadership of the APS.

Wednesday next, 5 pm.

The same request could be made of the establishment press,
the Journal, KRQE, KOAT, and KOB TV; an investigation and
then a candid, forthright and honest accounting of standards and 
accountability in the leadership of the APS.

If we really want students to grow into adults
who embrace character and courage and honor,
someone has to show them what they look like.




photo Mark Bralley