Playwright George Bernard Shaw once said, “the problem with communication is the illusion that it has been accomplished.” Friday, the Baldwin County Board of Education dissolved any public illusions there may have been regarding whether the lines of communication are flowing effectively through the channels of our public school system. The disconnect among board members and between the board itself and the public was made perfectly clear.

About 20 members of the community showed up for what was supposed to be a lunchtime work session to discuss the Fiscal Year 2009 budget. But to their surprise, the meeting had been canceled. Obviously, not everyone on the board was notified of the cancellation in a timely manner, which begs us to ask: If a simple matter such as the cancellation of a board meeting cannot be agreed upon and relayed in a timely fashion, what does it say about the level of dialogue taking place on more important issues?

In previous editorials, we have chided the board for leaving the local community in the dark with regards to key issues. We have also pressed the importance of community members doing their part to better our schools. Like we’ve said before, there is a two-way street on the road to successful public schools. Friday, several members of the community did their part — they showed up ready to listen — and to their credit, so did the superintendent and two members of the board. The fact that those two board members were not notified of the cancellation until an hour before the scheduled meeting yet they showed up anyway and were willing to address community members’ concerns at least demonstrates an attempt to communicate. We appreciate that effort, but what about the rest of the board? Their absence, coupled with confusion regarding the cancellation of the meeting, is cause for concern.

The board of education has increasingly placed itself and the school system under a microscope where they are all watched and scrutinized more critically based upon breakdowns in communication of their own creation that could quite possibly have been avoided.

Our school system is facing several pressing needs that must be addressed: There is still no representation for District 3; a new budget has yet to be adopted for FY2009 and cuts in state funding have almost been assured; a mounting level of secrecy and distrust is forming between the board and members of the community; and the bar for Adequate Yearly Progress is steadily being raised. Simply put — there is far too much at stake to allow a lack of communication to place a wedge between this board and the

community.

It would be in perhaps the board’s best interest to move forward with preliminary plans to hold a series of open forums at area schools where parents, teachers and residents can ask questions freely and hear open responses to their concerns. This could go a long way in helping to bridge the growing communication divide.

Every conversation has at least two sides, and the foundation for every effective conversation is open lines of communication. It’s time for the Board of Education to get down to the business of discussing — openly with the community — the issues at hand in an effort to find viable solutions. The education of our children and the betterment of the community at-large depends on it. It’s time for the Board of Education to move past the illusion.