Joseph Woodruff, member of the Board of Education, last week described the Middletown school system as an “industry” with the people as “stockholders.” While it was not extended further, Woodruff's metaphor had ample room to take care of the school board as well. To the people of Middletown, the Board of Education must resemble an industrial Board of Directors with open meetings to which stockholders are invited but not needed, and with numerous closed meetings to which Stockholders are neither invited nor needed. Since April only one Middletonian who did not have a special problem to be discussed has attended a public board meeting. During this period, the board has hired a new superintendent of schools, raised teacher salaries and asked the public for an additional tax levy. The public's only information about what the board does comes from the coverage of the press and radio...

related Stanley Meisler articles by topic: