To: State Education Political Leaders,
    Governor and Legislators

Re: Education Funding Policy Development

I believe education (e.g. funding) reform is an issue that the general electorate is the most knowledgeable and concerned about of any public issue you have ever dealt with at the State level. Parents by nature invest effort and concern in things important to their children. Parents have had a prolonged exposure to and first hand experience with the failure of some elements of their children's education. Parents will have strong feelings even in the case when they do not choose to go to the polls. This uniqueness of education issues likely requires unique policy development and implementation practices by you.

I have heard two Ohio legislators, who are on education committees, this last year present their views on the problems and the solutions. My evaluation is that they do not have the depth of insight into the issues needed to make good policy. Based on public communications from the governor's office, my view is the governor does not have the depth of knowledge needed either. One of the elements of the corporate and federal government restructuring of the 1990's has been a "Total Quality" philosophy with a flattening of organizations to get more first-hand (in-the-trenches) knowledgeable folks making the most important strategic and operational decisions. Out of that restructuring, the best organizations have identified leaders that have top-to-bottom working experience with the problems, and these new leaders are often stirred to fix the problems.

Fear, both political and personal, is pervasive in the minds of state political decision makers on this issue. I am guessing the political fear of peers and the electorate is a natural manifestation of the political paradigm your careers have conformed to, or perhaps even fortified. One of the legislators I listened to this year noted that legislators received threats to their property and in a few cases to their persons while working on the education issues. My view is that most anger to harm another in such political circumstances comes from long frustrating experiences with that other person not listening or acting sincerely, and that the issue in contention is very important to the angry person and to the larger world. Such fear too often leads to bad decision making.

Given these observations, I recommend it is time for a different paradigm of policy decision making in education.

Value very disciplined objectivity in evidence gathering and in reasoning from the evidence. I assume this also implies extraordinary effort to gather evidence; even when you might not want to make the extra effort. This suggests consciously seeking the opposite points-of-view and their best reasoned arguments.

You might even enlist volunteer help in evidence gathering. This will add to your work, but it will likely add some evidence content of merit. The volunteers will experience what it takes to gather evidence. The volunteers also will more likely believe you got the evidence they value.

Absolutely openly sharing all evidence and arguments with the electorate, whether it supports your position or not. Today's rising technology allows you to put very thorough work out on the WWW. You should already be composing documents electronically. The electorate will then consume it on their needs basis. My experience is that good work gets noticed, but not always on the time scale the author expects.

Each decision maker should be able to argue as effectively an opponent's case as the opponent can. If you can argue it better than your opponent, then you are obliged to do so. This will sharpen the quality of your own position and persuade your opponent that you do understand their position.

I might guess you will find my recommendation too idealistic. I believe the alternate paradigm being recommended here is in the tradition of Hobbes, Locke, deTocqueville, Hancock, Jefferson, ...; of noble legal practice itself. It always intrigues me how young folks tend toward just such idealism until adulthood erodes them into cynicism. It intrigues me how distressed and helpless you feel about your plight. I always find such times to be when I need to make a change in me. If it is any consolation, there have been experiences where the alternate paradigm has worked. Your choice.

Sincerely,

Allen Wilkinson