Adam Layne responses to SLPS Candidate Survey (via Susan Turk)
Link to main article here.
Adam Layne is an education advocate who has been driving toward educational equity and excellence in the city of St. Louis where he began his professional career. Adam began his career in 2011, joining Teach For America and teaching Algebra I, Algebra II, and Trigonometry to students at Clyde C. Miller Career Academy on North Grand. In 2014, he stepped into a new role as the Scholar Support & College Access Director for InspireSTL, an education access and support nonprofit serving students in the city as part of a 10-year experience. While there, Adam built curriculum necessary for running successful mentorship, leadership, educational excellence, and college access programs. In 2016, Adam transitioned to becoming the Director of the InspireSTL program and during his time, 100% of students graduated on-time from high school with an over 90% college persistence rate. Adam currently continues to build culturally responsive curriculum in St. Louis for various programs, and also does diversity, equity, and inclusion trainings for middle and high school students and staff. Adam currently is working on a research project at Washington University in their Academy on Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion. Adam is a native of Boston, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from The George Washington University in Washington, DC. He received his Master of Education in Secondary Education and Curriculum Development from UMSL. Adam lives in the 18th ward as a resident of the Lewis Place neighborhood.
#1 The SLPS is currently governed by an appointed Special Administrative Board, whose current term ends June, 30 2019. The elected board has limited responsibilities. While possible, it is not guaranteed the elected board will return to power during the term for which you are running because the state board of education may extend the SAB for as many terms as they wish. Why, then, are you running? If you believe the elected board will return to power, please explain why.
I am running because I believe that our young people have so much potential and are pivotal pieces to the positive transformation of our city. We, as board members, have the opportunity to address obstacles in education and maximize opportunities. Though it is not a guarantee that the elected board will gain back power and thus an increased ability to drive and impact change, it is crucial to ensure the right people are on the board to lead this effort. Now, more than ever, the residents of St. Louis need to be demanding of and intelligent about who we choose to represent our young people and our families. I believe the elected board should have power because that means that the residents of the city have power. The board members, chosen by the people, should represent the best interests of the people and work relentlessly for the people.
I believe there is one way the board will and should regain power other than simply being handed it by the State. Elected officials often are willing to deeply engage the public when they need votes. They’ll knock, send out mailers, put up signs, and make countless visits and trips around the city. When they get elected, however, that outreach stops abruptly. We go from prioritizing knocking on every door to expecting everyone to show up to a monthly meeting having not heard from us the other 29 to 30 other days of the month. As an elected board, we need to take that same energy we had during campaign season and apply it to after the election. We need to be in schools and go to communities to build advocacy and show we value the voice of the students and families of SLPS. We have to do our job to have the students and families of SLPS renew their confidence in us as a board. This will take work. I stand by this, and I hope to be the person to bring this to fruition with my fellow board members. If in June the state doesn’t believe we should regain power, we would have a strong base of families that would write letters or show up on the board’s behalf. Right now, I don’t believe we have that. No matter the outcome in June, our biggest priority as a board is determining how we instill confidence of an elected board back into the students, families, teachers, and staff of SLPS.
#2 What is your understanding of the role of a school board member and what do you want to accomplish as a board member?
I believe that school board members have a dual responsibility: to govern and to advocate. As a school board member, we have a responsibility to examine and analyze the policies that govern our district for the purpose of ensuring those policies are the best to serve the families and students of our district. Also, with governance comes the responsibility of ensuring the superintendent is the most capable individual, able to lead in all district-wide matters, and is held accountable for the results of the schools in out district. Lastly with governance, the board is responsible for ensuring proper financial management of district funds. The second responsibility, advocacy, is just as important. We, as board members, should be voices for the people we serve. We have a responsibility to visible, to learn from our community, to give our constituents opportunities to be heard, and ensure that we take action on and value the voices of our community. I don’t see one as being more important than the other.
#3 Are you the parent or grandparent of children who currently attend or recently graduated from the SLPS? Did you attend and/or graduate from the SLPS? Have you ever worked for the SLPS or are you related to a current or former employee? Are you now or have you in the past served as a board member? If you are not an SLPS parent, graduate, former employee or relation of one, or board member, do you have any other connection to the SLPS?
I appreciate my connection to SLPS. While I have no children, I taught math at Clyde C. Miller Career Academy and consider each of the hundreds of students I taught over the years to be my family. Aside from my direct years of experience in the classroom, I’ve had the pleasure of regularly walking the halls of every SLPS middle and high school over the years as the program I directed, InspireSTL, worked closely with teachers and building administrators to provide holistic services and support to middle and high school students in the city. I have many relationships in SLPS that I truly value and have always reinforced two truths: we have and endless supply of talented students in our district and an abundance of dedicated teachers and adults eager to serve them.
I have served on a board before. I currently serve on the board of Kairos Academies, a charter school opening in south St. Louis city that will provide personalized learning and individualized, 1-to-1 coaching to students. I did not graduate from an SLPS school as I grew up in Boston, Massachusetts.
#4 What are your thoughts about the Special Administrative Board which currently governs the district?
I know who they are and what they’ve done, but my opinion of them stems mainly from the SAB meetings I’ve attended. I can speak to my impressions from those meetings. They occasionally ask tough questions and demand a certain level of accountability during the meetings I’ve attended, however I wonder about he follow through and commitment to equity for all St. Luis city residents as it pertains to education and educated communities. I will also say that while regaining accreditation doesn’t mean that every SLPS student is receiving a high-quality education and experience within our schools.
#5 What is your understanding of the impact of charter schools on the SLPS? Should more charter schools open in the city?
In my opinion, the biggest impact charter schools have had is in dividing the educational landscape in St. Louis. We have effectively made education “black and white” in the city with no opportunity to operate in the gray. I believe education in St. Louis cannot advance on a divided front. I hear arguments all the time that focus on the fact that charters in St. Louis overall are “not performing better”, but completely dismiss the fact that most public schools in the city are also underperforming. Pointing out charters are performing poorly doesn’t make public schools perform better.
I serve on the board of a charter school opening up in the city. I am also a former SLPS teacher who had an inflow of students after the Imagine Schools closed. The first reason I serve is because I looked across the charter boards in the city and I didn’t see representation for the majority of students who attend these schools. Yes, they made a choice, and I want to ensure they have representation when their voices need to be heard because representation matters. I know how uprooting an entire community can have negative repercussions on the ones affected the most. I also am aware of the more than $67 million (last figure I was aware of) the district has to allocate to charters in the city. I am also aware of the financial mismanagement that occurs in our district. If someone were to tell me that $67 million dollars recovered from charters would solve the problems of SLPS and create a quality education for every SLPS student, I would be the first person to start knocking on doors and collecting signatures. I believe we should come to the table together with real solutions to our education problems instead of spending on opposite sides of the fence.
My second reason for joining the board of Kairos is that they are doing something actually difference and providing 1-on-1 coaching daily, which was a life-changing experience we provided at my nonprofit. There are too many charters in St. Louis claiming to do something different, and aren’t.. That is my biggest gripe with charters, that and it is entirely too easy to get a charter. I believe to fix this, we need community members to approve the addition of charter school in their region in conjunction with the board as well as have the community and board vet the candidates for governance and leadership of the charter school. So no, I am not in favor of opening a slew of new charters unless, after coming together at the table, SLPS deems a specific charter is necessary to serve the city’s needs. For example, if someone wanted to open a charter for specialized learning of students with disabilities and special needs, I would be for it because of the lack of transformational support for students with special needs.
What is most disheartening is that we pit families in the city against each other. We effectively disown parents who truly believe they are making the best decision for their children if they don’t choose SLPS. We even excommunicate them from the process of being part of the solution. I don’t believe in choosing side, I believe in the equitable and quality educational experiences for ALL students who call St. Louis home. Parents don’t want to send their kids 20 miles out of their zip code to sit in a classroom where they are seen as “other” just to get a great education. Parents don’t want to have to use their cousin’s address in Kirkwood to beat the odds. But parents also don’t want to look back one day and feel like the failed their child because they didn’t do anything in their power to give their child their best chance. Do I believe there is a grand plot to privatize education in the region? Probably. But that needs to be taken up with the Rex Sinquefields of the world instead of hating and blaming families and kids. That’s not on them, that is on us. We need to restore quality and thus faith in ALL of our SLPS schools and that is something I intend to work toward. It’s not enough to TELL them to choose SLPS, we need to prove to them why they should.
#6 The SAB is currently developing a not for profit corporation called the Consortium Partnership Network which will be governed by its own appointed board and whose purpose will be to govern the lowest performing schools. Meramec and Ashland elementary schools have been assigned to the CPN for the 2019-2020 school year. The CPN will be empowered to contract with private not-for-profit companies to manage these schools. If returned to governance, the elected school board will have an as yet undefined oversight role regarding the CPN but no direct oversight of the schools they are assigned. What are your thoughts on this?
I think we, as a community, should decide whether or not this is the best decision for the students, families, and teachers of SLPS. Even though Meramec and Ashland have been chosen, I wonder the extent to which the community supports the initiative. Therefore, to me it makes sense for the decision to be made after governance is restored to the elected board who are the representatives of the people. Then allow the board to do it’s due diligence, vetting the opportunity the CPN presents and gathering the thoughts of the families that represent Meramec, Ashland, and the communities they are housed in. This information gathering and advocacy by a governing elected board in conjunction with more detailed information about the plan and strategies for the CPN are what I believe are required before a sound decision can be made.
#7 Do you have any ideas to improve public confidence in SLPS and improve enrollment?
I think public confidence depends on a number of factors. Before jumping to solutions, I would like to find out the root cause of the issue as opposed to assuming what the cause of the problem is. I think two main issues are that families don’t feel they have a voice in SLPS and also that families can’t affect change within SLPS. There are issues in any district, but when people feel powerless in addressing those issues, their confidence deteriorates. Agency in that way stems from the relationships they have with the district. At the end of the day, what matters is the relationship families have with the district. First thing we need to do is restore their voice by returning power to the board. The board is chosen by the people and that is a direct way of ensuring some type of representation. Second, we need to rebuild relationships and that means direct outreach from the elected board. We can’t just expect community members to show up at school board meetings, we need to meet them where they are give them a reason to show up. We can hold office hours at different schools, come and attend staff meetings to hear concerns of the staff and not just be present in schools our own kids attend, and provide childcare and dinner at board meetings to have more of a community feel. We can and should reimagine community participation. When families are looking for a school, they do their research and value, more than anything, what other parents and students are saying about the school. If the students and families attending the school don’t have great things to say, it doesn’t matter how many banners and ads we have asking people to choose SLPS. We need to do our part to create ambassadors who can say that they saw a board member come and listen at their school, or they went down to a board meeting and felt the community was heard, or that they can list a number of ways the district plans to improve the quality of education, ways that were constructed using the input of the community.
#8 The Missouri legislature usually considers bills that would expand school choice by expanding charter schools, using vouchers, education savings accounts or tuition tax credits making it possible for students to attend private schools using public money or depriving the state of general revenue so parents could use their own money for private tuition without suffering tax penalties. The Trump administration promotes school choice and may re-allocate Title I funding away from providing low income children with extra resources to master reading and math toward expanding school choice options. School board members will be faced with an uphill battle in a struggle to attract and retain students to our school district. How will you respond to these challenging developments?
I would oppose the legislation. I think charters capitalize on the ability to provide different choices and options because our district doesn’t. I would oppose this on the grounds that if the state wants to fun school choice and increase options, they can create a separate budget for it instead of using Title I funds. Aside from not using Title I funds, I believe increasing financial access to different types of schools is fine. It increases diverse populations and experiences for all. I see two issues. The first is that our public transportation system does not align with this ideal. If we really wanted diversity in all areas of our city and county, our public transportation system would reflect that. Second, if we really want to see this melting pot of education, we need to also focus on improving the quality of all schools, specifically SLPS. To me, it’s ridiculous and irresponsible to say we want to pay for students to go to well-resourced schools and not want to additionally fully resource underresourced schools and school districts.
#9 What are your thoughts on the following legislation being considered by the Missouri legislature this year?
I support this measure. I believe power needs to be restored to the board and thus the people. I also believe that there needs to be more local and community oversight of any new charters. I would change the bill and say that charters should be approved by the local board as well before being sent to the state level. I think the state level approval doesn’t allow for the acknowledgement of how different neighborhoods and districts are across the state.
#10 What are your thoughts on SLPS magnet schools?
I support the idea of magnet schools. I taught for three years at a magnet school within SLPS. My reasons are similar to the answer to question #8. Diversity of educational experiences allows our students to interact with more people that the ones in their radius. To be honest, I think students who live outside of the city have a negative view of the city that can only change through meaningful and joyful learning experiences within the city. To have true magnets, we need to commit to quality in our educator’s ability to cultivate culturally competent learning environments, and their ability to be culturally competent themselves.
If we want to truly take a step beyond, we should fully resource and create excellence in ALL our schools and when the quality of the school is superb, all students would be attracted to all the schools. We shouldn’t just pump money into magnets, using all our resources to attract a particular demographic.
#11 What are your thoughts on neighborhood schools?
Even saying the term “neighborhood school” in St. Louis bears with it a negative connotation. Our neighborhood schools should be staples of our communities and strengths of our communities. When we tear down and strip resources from our neighborhood schools, we are indirectly expressing how we feel about the community the school sits in. I believe when we begin to reinvest and revamp out neighborhood schools, we will see better investment in our communities and stronger communities as a result.
#12 What ideas do you have to help students learn?
I believe all students can learn. The first thing we need to do is raise our standards. A commitment to quality and excellence needs to start earlier. We need to instill a love for education among our students by instilling that in our teachers and staff who work with them. How can out students be joyful learners if our staff are not joyful educators. We instill that joy in our staff by paying our teachers better and providing them with the resources they need.
I believe students learn best when they have some control of their learning and teachers have control of their content. Standardization often strips learning environments of both. I would love to bring teachers to the table, especially in professional development sessions where they discuss the flaws in the curriculum and scopes of sequence and talk about ways to make learning more effective outside of the standardized plan.
Experiential learning is something I also believe in. When students are able to tie their learning into the world around them, it promotes a healthier mentality around education. It also breaks up the monotony of the classroom. Especially for middle and elementary school students, learning by way of discovery should be promoted and not just in the form of an occasional field trip, word problems, or infrequent experiments in class. Experiential learning should be its own focus where we provide curriculum, support, and resources for schools and teachers to adequately execute.
I think we need to revamp the way we discipline students. Students are coming in with a lot of troubling experiences, circumstances, and trauma. We need more counselors and less detention. We need to build in time for real therapists, and not just people who can change a student’s schedule, are used to talk and impart tools for students to be more successful in and outside of the classroom. A radical idea I’ve always had for the high school level is a change in the schedule. We have one and a half hour blocks, back-to-back, at most of our public schools. We could cut classes down by a half hour, freeing up 2 hours a day for students to rest, recharge, and seek help from quality counselors in their schools. We want our students to go to college where they will have the responsibility to manage their time, but throughout the first 18 years of their educational experience we adults structure their time down to the minute. We fear what would happen if we give our students a little freedom of choice within the day. Most of the top performing schools build in free time for students during the day. This type of autonomy allows students to manage their time and seek out help, and actually use resources. This will also help students see going to their counselor as a benefit and not as a punishment.
#13 What do you think about the MAP tests and standardized tests in general?
I believe in assessment as a necessary tool in tracking student achievement and driving toward results. However, we’ve gone from using testing as a tool to using testing as the main objective. Teachers are forced to “teach to the test” as opposed to use their creativity and skills to increase content mastery and depth of knowledge with our students.. Coupling this with the fact that there is inherent testing bias especially for students of color who comprise a majority of our district, it is evident we need to rethink the way we test our students especially what we’re testing them on and the frequency to which we administer benchmarks.
#14 Approximately 70% of SLPS high school graduates who enroll in college must take remedial courses. What policies would you promote to lower this statistic?
My first year teaching math, a freshman student came up to me and told me should couldn’t complete her math assignment because she couldn’t read the directions. Our high school students are graduating unprepared, but the problem isn’t exclusively tied to their four years of high school. Students who struggle in high school have probably been struggling years before. The remedial classes students often take are in math and English. We need to work earlier (elementary, middle school) with students to build their number sense. Math continues to build off of itself, but even complex math is comprised of simpler parts. We need math teachers at the earlier levels who can push students and get them to think deeply about math concepts and not just complete problems. College math requires this. Some of my poorest performing algebra students were exceptional at basic computation and multiplication tables. I could tell they were ahead when it came to memorizing math operations, but topped out there and weren’t pushed further.
As for English, we need to build better literacy skills. Other schools have summer reading lists and resources for students to deepen their reading comprehension, but that is not something we do on a wide scale. When it comes to high school, most grammar instruction goes out of the window. Student write essays and are graded for content as opposed to composition and syntax.. This does our students a disservice as those nuanced elements are tested on college entrance exams. Our worst students graduate not being able to read and our best students graduate barely able to write.
Lastly, we could have students sit in on college classes their freshman year of high school and get a detailed report of their gaps, in a qualitative way that shows the ways they need to develop in their math thinking and English proficiency so that educators can take a more targeted approach to educating them.
#15 In the past the elected school board has been criticized as dysfunctional. Local media have unfairly perpetuated this impression. How would your election to the board help to dispel this inaccurate perception?
I believe the board has been painted this way to dissuade the public that the elected board should return to power and reduce public confidence in the board. I think the board does an excellent job of listening to the people and doing its due diligence to serve the students, families, and educators of SLPS. I think my election to the board would help because I plan to be extremely vocal about all the great work the board is doing and the accountability we have as a board. I believe the best way to dispel myths is to show people the truth. I want to get out in front of the people, be accessible to the people, and bring everyone to the table so we can change education in our city together in such a way that the media won’t have a chance. This will only happen if we are all working together, united and well-represented.
