Mark Twain Union is a small rural elementary school district in Calaveras County serving some 700 students.
Credit: Louise Simson / Mark Twain Union Elementary School District
I believe in accountability and performance. My years in the private sector showed me a way of doing business that is accountable for funds spent and services delivered.
But one government accountability measure — the Federal Program Monitoring (FPM) review — is an exercise in compliance that places a disproportionate burden on small school districts and takes desperately needed resources away from our kids. It is set up for large districts that can devote a full-time staff person to manage the process, attend the trainings, and upload the tsunami of documents that are required, but it forces small districts like mine to invest thousands of dollars in consultants and software just to file the paperwork.
The intention of this…
