May 10, 2005
Tonight, Charlottesville City council members met in a closed door meeting to try and iron out the details of an advisory committee aimed at finding a new superintendent of schools.
"I think that this committee is a good thing. I think it is a way for the school board to acknowledge that the last year has split the community in many different directions and by involving the community, they can get the feel of the community," said Mayor David Brown.
Under the most current plan, the proposed committee will consist of eight members including a former school board member, two current school board members, a former city councilor, and a current city school staffer. However, the composition of the committee could change before the final announcement.
"I think at this point we are just trying to look through the list of candidates that would be good for this commission and fill it," Mayor Brown said.
However, not all of the council members were present for the meeting. Councilor Rob Schilling says he opposes the committee because, "this commission would serve as a shadow board whose accountability relationships would be murky, which is not an improvement on our current situation."
This controversy comes at a time where two Charlottesville school board members have announced they will not seek reappointment to their post as well as the beginning of a petition to have school board members elected rather than appointed by the council.
Advisory Committee In Question 