Despite the impact local school board members have on public education, little has been written about them and the experiences and motivations they bring to the board table, particularly from a board member's perspective.
Report Card: The Weekly Education of an American School Board Member fills that void. Authored by James Patrick Hussey, it includes 100 essays ranging from surprisingly interesting treatises on budgets and bond levies to impassioned articles underscoring the role of public education in a free society. Each essay serves as a catalyst for classroom discussions or independent writing assignments that engage students intellectually and often emotionally, in the topic it explores.
Hussey uses his extensive experiences in education and journalism to create a work that is intellectually rigorous, but accessible to a wide audience. Unlike some books exploring public policy, Report Card rarely shouts at its readers. Instead, Hussey writes with the humility of someone required to live in his community after the newspaper columns from which these essays are adapted, were published.
It will be of special interest to persons with current or anticipated roles in America's public schools, particularly administrators, teachers, education students, and elected officials. This book will also make an excellent supplemental text for teacher preparation or educational leadership classes, from introductory courses to doctoral seminars.
Industry Reviews
James Hussey provides intelligent, straightforward and sometimes controversial takes on a wide variety of educational issues. While Hussey was serving his first three-year term as a school board member, he wrote more than 100 thoughtful newspaper essays in which he publicly explored the issues facing his board. The articles were well received and, as they increased in number, Hussey was urged to compile them into a book. Reading the resulting collection, Hussey's journalistic skills and breadth of educational experiences are apparent. It also is obvious he is a master at using anecdotes, quotations and humor in bringing fresh meaning to the topics he covers. Report Card covers a range of interesting topics at multiple levels, enabling his work to appeal to both popular and professional audiences. It is also suited as a supplemental text in education courses at all levels. Hussey courageously faces contentious issues head on. As examples, he takes on 1) teacher certification requirements;2) programs designed to reward better boardsmanship; 3) school athletics and coddled athletes; 4) evaluations of teacher quality and performance; 5) racial injustice in the educational system; and 6) infusing foreign languages and global perspectives int -- James F. Bemis, executive director emeritus, Commission on Colleges, Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges
James Hussey provides intelligent, straightforward and sometimes controversial takes on a wide variety of educational issues. While Hussey was serving his first three-year term as a school board member, he wrote more than 100 thoughtful newspaper essays in which he publicly explored the issues facing his board.
The articles were well received and, as they increased in number, Hussey was urged to compile them into a book. Reading the resulting collection, Hussey's journalistic skills and breadth of educational experiences are apparent. It also is obvious he is a master at using anecdotes, quotations and humor in bringing fresh meaning to the topics he covers.
Report Card covers a range of interesting topics at multiple levels, enabling his work to appeal to both popular and professional audiences. It is also suited as a supplemental text in education courses at all levels.
Hussey courageously faces contentious issues head on. As examples, he takes on 1) teacher certification requirements; 2) programs designed to reward "better boardsmanship; 3) school athletics and coddled athletes; 4) evaluations of teacher quality and performance; 5) racial injustice in the educational system; and 6) infusing foreign languages and global perspectives into the curriculum.
While Hussey does not expect his readers, including this one, to agree with everything between Report Card's covers, it is inarguable that Report Card is a collection of expertly written essays exploring contemporary issues affecting our schools. Grade: A+. -- James F. Bemis, executive director emeritus, Commission on Colleges, Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges
