Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, July 11, 1994 TAG: 9407110071
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Few are likely to accuse Wayne Harris of spending too much time in his office and becoming cut off from the real world. He tries to make sure he doesn't become isolated.
During his first year as Roanoke's school superintendent, he has spent a lot of time in the schools, and in the community speaking to groups about schools.
In 12 months, Harris made 224 visits to the city's 29 schools, an average of more than seven to each school. He spoke to 78 civic organizations, community agencies, PTAs, churches and other groups.
Harris didn't call ahead when he visited the schools. He just showed up, talked with principals and teachers, and observed. He wanted to know what was really happening in the schools.
"Spending time in the schools on a regular basis gave me a first-hand look at where the teaching and learning vehicle met the road," he said recently. He believes the knowledge garnered from the visits will help him work with the school system's staff.
If the school visits weren't enough to keep him abreast of school issues, Harris met with School Board members once a month individually to get their ideas and thoughts on schools.
He prepared the school budget two months earlier than usual and held neighborhood meetings so that parents, teachers and city residents could express their views on the spending plan. They were asked to fill out cards to indicate budget priorities.
Harris also asked all school principals to evaluate his performance - anonymously, if they wished - during his first year and indicate what he could have been done differently to be more effective.
Beginning this fall, Harris will meet with teachers, school by school, to hear their views on school issues and complaints. The principals will not be allowed in the meetings, allowing the teachers to be candid without fear of reprisal.
A hallmark of Harris' first year in Roanoke has been his effort to communicate with groups both inside and outside the school system.
By reaching out to the community, the superintendent said, he tried to dispel myths and misconceptions about the school system, particularly the notion that city schools are violent.
Despite the expulsion of 10 students for bringing weapons or drugs onto school property in the past year, Harris said the schools are safe. And he backs up his contention by pointing out that there were no major acts of vandalism, injuries or fights in the schools during the past year. He said the expulsion rate is higher in other urban school districts.
By most accounts, Harris, 48, has done a good job, both as a communicator and leader for the school division, which has 12,760 students. His first year has been far less controversial than that of his predecessor, Frank Tota, who made far-reaching personnel changes.
The School Board is pleased with the superintendent's performance, said Chairman Nelson Harris. "He got an excellent evaluation and a [4.6 percent] pay raise," he said.
Vice Chairman Marilyn Curtis said the superintendent has met the board's expectations.
But Wayne Harris's first year as superintendent has not been without conflict.
The transfer of William Hackley and suspension of George Franklin caused some discontent in the black community.
Hackley, who was an assistant superintendent when Wayne Harris got the top post a year ago, served as administrator of the alternative education program until he retired June 30.
Franklin, who helped found that program eight years ago, was suspended recently for allegedly failing to comply with administrative and financial regulations. His suspension was reversed by the School Board.
Franklin's status is uncertain, because Harris has hired a new principal-administrator to oversee the alternative education program. Franklin's fate apparently will rest with the new head of the program.
City Councilman William White, a former School Board member, said he was disappointed by Franklin's suspension, although he gives high marks to Harris in his first year.
White said Franklin should have a role in the alternative education program for troubled youngsters because of his ability to relate to them.
Onzlee Ware, a lawyer who has questioned the expulsion of students before the school system has a place to educate them, also believes that Franklin should be retained. "He has the ability to work with students."
But neither White nor Ware considers Franklin's suspension a dimming of Harris' achievements. The Rev. Charles Green, president of the Roanoke chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, said Harris, who grew up in the Roanoke Valley, has strong support in the black community.
Nelson Harris said it is unfortunate the expulsion of 10 students and Franklin's suspension have distracted attention from the superintendent's solid accomplishments.
The superintendent prepared a budget that gave raises to teachers and other school employees. It was approved unanimously by the School Board and City Council.
The budget included money to cover the first year in a three-year plan to make teachers' salaries more competitive with those in other school divisions in Western Virginia.
With the help of his staff, Harris has developed a student conduct code that clearly spells out the penalties for misconduct. He has also begun a review of the instructional program to establish higher standards and expectations for learning.
Nelson Harris said the instructional review might sound like an esoteric topic, but it could have far-reaching implications for what is taught in city schools and how it is taught.
The pending restructuring of the alternative education program could solve the problem of expelling students without having a place to educate them, he said.
"We don't want to abandon them and just put them out on the streets," Nelson Harris said. As part of the overhaul of alternative education, he said, a specialized program for expelled students might be included.
Wayne Harris said he wants to change the image of alternative education as a place for bad kids. As an educator, he believes the youngsters in the program should be challenged academically. The staff should be certified to teach, he said, but many staff members are not.
In assessing the alternative education program, he said, he determined that it needed a shot in the arm. It might need a name change as well as a structural overhaul, he said.
Wayne Harris has made computers and educational technology a top priority and has developed a five-year, $8 million plan for upgrading technology in every school. He has asked the city to include $2 million for school technology in the next bond issue. Businesses have been asked to donate their old computers to the schools. City Manager Bob Herbert supports the plan to upgrade technology, he said.
Wayne Harris has a high level of energy that serves him well. Whenever he finds time, he works on his thesis for a doctorate from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. He has finished all of his classes and hopes to complete his thesis by December.
Harris said he has been so busy that he hasn't been able to spend as much time with bus drivers, custodians, maintenance workers, cafeteria employees and similar workers.
"There was so much to do," he said.
As he looks to the next year, Harris said adequate funds for schools will be an issue for Roanoke and many other localities. The city received $3.1 million in additional state funds this year and expects more state money next year, but the schools will still face a challenge in funding for several years.
by CNB