The suggestion box on the elementary side of the building.
Randall School is implementing suggestion boxes to collect ideas from the public.
The intention is for people to use the system to express ideas or suggestions that could be implemented at the school, not serve as a channel for complaints, said Steven Bloom, district administrator.
On the elementary side of the school the black metal mailbox is located immediately to the right upon entering the school. At the junior high side of the school the black metal mailbox is located in the vestibule to the left and adjacent to a bulletin board containing school-related information. In both instances, multiple copies of the form will be available. A person can make use of the blank side of the form as well if the space provided is inadequate for an individual to explain their idea or suggestion.
“We hope that this provides an opportunity for people to express ideas or suggestions that will serve to advance the mission of our district which is “Striving Toward the Achievement of Excellence,'” Bloom said. He pointed out that there are other avenues for parents and community members to express concerns.
“Primarily, concerns should be brought first to the individual who would have the greatest familiarity with the matter and to whom the concern is directed,” Bloom said. “Additionally, if the matter is not resolved at that level then it should be brought to the attention of the administration. Also, by board policy, citizen’s may wish to speak at a meeting of the board.”
The inclusion of a space for a name and contact information of the member of the public making the suggestion being included on the suggestion box was a point of disagreement for some board members at Wednesday’s meeting.
Board Clerk Jan Brockway said she felt asking for a name might deter some people from offering suggestions.
But Board President Jim O’Connell and VicePresident Jan Iselin said they favored including names. If citizens can’t provide a name “then they shouldn’t be able to talk,” Iselin said.
Sleeves to hold the suggestion forms near the boxes are not installed yet, but will be soon, Bloom said. A copy of the form is available here.
Great idea, but wouldn’t it have been more efficient for them to use technology (e.g. e-mail or a web form) instead of pen and paper and dropboxes???
Just to clarify, the intent of these suggestion boxes is to increase 2-way communications. We cannot do that if we are dealing with anonymous entries which are obviously one-way. In many cases, follow-up information may be needed for us to fully understand or consider a concern or suggestion/idea.
As Dr. Bloom stated, this is another process for communications, certainly not the only process. In fact we just finished another round of Community listening sessions. Share your thoughts, they’re always welcome!