Where's Waldo? Oh, that's right; I am not looking for Waldo. I am looking for John R. Bender.
John who? John R. Bender. Remember him? You don't? Well, John R. Bender made a big push last year to be elected to the State Board of Education of Ohio from District 2. He won that election last November and took his seat on the State School Board here in Ohio in January 2007. But who has heard anything from this elected official since his election? I certainly haven't. I even sent him an e-mail last November to the address on his campaign committee website to congratulate him on his new position on the State School Board. But, alas, that e-mail bounced back as undeliverable. I don't think John Bender has ever made a visit to any of the school districts in Lucas County since having been elected. Why haven't we heard or read anything from him? What kind of representative is that? Who and where is John R. Bender?
I find it unsettling that Mr. Bender is an elected official who seems to be invisible. I find it unsettling that so many people profess to be interested in education but have absolutely no idea what the State Board of Education of Ohio is all about. I find it unsettling that neither the public nor the mass media seem to care that an elected school board member appears to ignore his constituency.
Just what is John Bender doing for education in the State of Ohio? Where is the public outcry, especially from those people who claim they are interested in our public school districts?
To whom is John R. Bender responsible? Where is the accountability?
4 comments:
He's got a new role, The Invisible Man.
great question Roland. I know that we the people of Lorain, Ohio would love to know the answer to that one!
Roland, a month and change ago, quite a few of us wrote to Mr. Bender to please take a look at the situation going on in the Lorain City schools. No one got a reply back. Not one person. Some time later, Mr. Bender had a letter printed in the Morning Journal that briefly asked everyone to give the board a chance and to give the new super time to get things organized. Completely disregarded everything that had been written to him. I think the man is on a beach somewhere getting his checks cashed for him.
At least some people recall John Bender.
It's just too bad that John Bender cannot be recalled.
By the way, I understand the Governor will need to name some appointments to the State Board of Education in the near future.
Remember, the State Board of Education of Ohio consists of nineteen (19) members; and, while eleven (11) members are elected from their respective districts, eight (8) at-large members are appointed by the Governor.
I wonder what criteria Ohio Governor Ted Strickland will use upon which to base his decision in making his appointments.
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