- Grosso wants to focus on mental health issues in schools as new education chair
Grosso wants to focus on mental health issues in schools as new education chair
The Washington Post
By Michael Alison Chandler
December 22 at 9:25 AM
D.C. Council member David Grosso (I- At large) has been appointed chairman of a stand-alone education committee starting in 2015.
In an interview, he said he would continue to focus on student discipline, early childhood education, and attendance issues, and that he wants to bring a new focus to improving mental health services for students.
Grosso, elected in 2012, has been a member of the two-year-old education committee under the chairmanship of David A. Catania (I - At large).
Catania, an outgoing Council member and mayoral candidate, wrote a flurry of legislation and was alternately criticized and praised for his aggressive approach to holding school officials accountable.
Evelyn Boyd Simmons, a parent advocate in Ward 2, was among a group of education advocates who sent a letter in December to D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson asking him to sustain a stand-alone education committee, rather than folding education issues back into the Committee of the Whole.
“David Catania, whatever one might think of his style, got the light shining on a lot of issues that have frustrated parents for a long time,” she said.
Simmons said that Grosso was very active on the education committee. “He’s obviously interested and ready to play what I think is an essential role,” she said.
The other members of the education committee are Yvette Alexander (Ward 7), Charles Allen (Ward 6), Anita Bonds (At large), and a yet-to-be named member from currently vacant seats in Ward 4 or Ward 8.
The following is adapted from an interview with Grosso shortly after he was named chairman on Friday.
Why do you want to chair the education committee?
Starting when I was running for the Council, it became clear to me that education issues have to be the main focus of the Council and of the work that I do on the Council. I want to make D.C. a really world-class city. To do that, we have to have a population that has the opportunity to be educated at the highest levels. I want to get engaged on this issue even more.
What is the role of the committee?
We provide oversight for the education sector for D.C. for pre-K through 12th grade. The role is to pass the budget and to perform oversight and budget committee hearings early in the year. All the capital spending for schools also comes through the committee.
The remainder of the time, the role is to perform oversight and hold accountable the work of the executive. With mayoral takeover of schools, there is a direct line of accountability. The Deputy Mayor for Education and the Office of the State Superintendent of Education and the State Board of Education all come before us, and the D.C. Public Charter School Board comes before us. Our role is to be able to see the big picture from all these perspectives and to make sure the entire government is moving forward in the right direction.
What are your priorities?
My staff and I are meeting and brainstorming now. As the major budget issues are coming down the pike, I have a strong commitment to transparency. I want to show clear lines of spending, and to show why we are spending money the way we are spending it.
I will also focus on student discipline issues, early childhood education, and continuing efforts around attendance, and all the conversations around making sure schools have the resources they need.
One issue that’s new: I’m keen to focus on expanding mental health services in the schools. I toured about nine mental health providers, including a few that engage in the schools. There’s a real gap in the numbers of available professionals and the students that need help and are dealing with traumas and other mental health issues.
I am also on the Committee on Health and Human Services, between myself and Council member Alexander, who chairs that committee, I think we can really focus some of the resources in the city government to try to tackle some of these problems.
What kind of leadership style or approach do you bring to this new role? How will it differ from Catania’s?
I like to play a collaborative role, working with the school system and across both sectors, in a way that can build a strong system.
I won’t be as aggressive when it comes to mandating issues. You probably won’t see a lot of legislation out of me. It’s not my style to mandate these sort of things.
When I have hearings, I’ve usually discussed what I’m going to be talking about ahead of time. The hearing is to get it on the record, not to surprise or embarrass people, but to make sure the record is complete, and the public has an opportunity to understand what’s happening.
The best thing that Catania did was to create that voice for the public, to offer a place to discuss their thoughts about the education system. And he created an expectation, that I am going to continue, for that same kind of openness so that people know someone is out there looking out for their children’s interests.
Michael Alison Chandler writes about schools and families in the Washington region.