SCHOOL PLANNING PROCESS TAKES CARE TO COVER ALL BASES

The Cape Girardeau school district is on the verge of embarking once again into the realm of strategic planning. Three years ago, Project Partnership left a bitter taste for some people, who felt the project was little more than a predetermined ploy to get a tax increase in disguise.

But there is ample reason to believe the strategic planning this time around may offer more to both the community and the school district. That hope comes from two school board members who are organizing the strategic planning. Both Harry Rediger and Bob Fox were heavily involved in Project Partnership, and both experienced the frustration when the school board didn't listen to committee recommendations.

That isn't to say a tax increase proposal won't be part of the final recommendation. Board members are up front about the need for improved facilities in the district. It is no secret that Cape Girardeau's aging school buildings -- especially elementary schools -- need considerable repair and renovation. But voters aren't likely to face a tax proposal for at least a year, if not longer.

Project Partnership was supposed to address broad planning issues within the district. It eventually boiled down to building needs and taxes instead of a broad-based blueprint of district planning. This time board members want to ensure that the strategic planning takes an all-encompassing look at every aspect of the school district. They want to know what is right and what is wrong with the schools. They want to map out the future of the school district, and they want to ask patrons how to best arrive at these goals.

Like Project Partnership, this strategic planning effort will involve many people. In contrast, it will involve considerably more staff and parents at each building instead of a hand-picked few. A board of patrons also will be established, involving business people and parents who don't serve on the other committees. These people will help critique the planning process and assess the feeling and tone of the community. That was certainly something lacking last time around. Being in tune with community feelings may provide fewer surprises at the ballot box.

It is good to see this planning process will call upon the many able people who submitted applications to the Cape Girardeau County Commission for two school board openings in late April. These are people who obviously care about the future direction of the Cape Girardeau's public schools.

The public's attitude about the schools and administration will no doubt play a role in the planning process, as well it should. If people don't feel good about the schools and the leadership, a bond issue will prove a difficult sell.

This time around, the district will take its time with strategic planning. Rediger said a recommendation from the various committees will probably wait until the end of next school year. That means a tax proposal probably wouldn't be placed on the ballot until later in 1996 or 1997.

Fox and Rediger have stressed the importance of community input and honesty. These are certainly key considerations. A spirited give-and-take between school and community may go a long way to mending hard feelings and moving Cape Girardeau's schools forward.