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Reprinted with permission of the
Meriden Record-Journal, January 29,
2006 WALLINGFORD - Actions speak louder than words. Last year in this column I panned Superintendent of Schools Ken Henrici for what I considered a lackluster endorsement of efforts to promote diversity in the Wallingford school system. Despite several letters to this newspaper protesting my criticism and praising Ken’s contributions to the diversity cause, I remained disappointed with the weak language he employed in his support of increasing the number of minorities in the local classrooms. Unlike so many people involved in the public sector, however, Ken Henrici let his actions exemplify what his mouth did not. In the year or so since I penned that criticism the Wallingford school system has increased minority representation on its staff far beyond any gains accumulated during the tenure of all his predecessors. I was reminded of that fact last week when I perused the newspaper article detailing the main points of Ken’s annual evaluation. Unfortunately any mention of the unprecedented gains in minority hiring seem to be lumped under the category of community relations or ignored altogether. Instead there was a great deal of verbiage about Ken’s shortcomings, especially his rapport with certain board of education members. Remembering my Mom’s old adage that life is a two-way street, I couldn’t help but wonder how those BOE members would have fared if their performance had been subject to evaluation. But I digress. Back to Ken’s performance in increasing diversity in Wallingford. For starters there are the seven minority teachers hired during the last school year. And while I do not have the racial or ethnic breakdown on those hires, I do know that an increase of even one black teacher is significant in this day and age. It may have been a decade ago, but I can still remember the day that my wife Fran and I took our daughter Lea back to school in Washington D. C. After unloading the car we left the campus in search of a place to grab a bite to eat. A couple of blocks away we came to a Roy Rogers fast food restaurant. Rather than use the drive-through I pulled into the parking lot and we went inside to eat. Imagine my surprise when I turned around with our tray of food and discovered that we three Moynihans were the only white people in the place. As I walked to an empty table I was sure there were 40 or 50 pairs of eyes focused on us, wondering what we were doing there. As I ate my roast beef sandwich, I could feel those same eyes burning a hole in the back of my head. It was only when I looked around that I realized the other diners were there for the exact same reason we were - to eat lunch. I relate this story because I think it illustrates the problem Wallingford faces in hiring minorities, especially African-American teachers. The discomfort that I felt looking into all those black faces is probably the way a minority teacher of color would feel when walking into a faculty meeting at a Wallingford school. Why would anyone want to subject himself to being uncomfortable? Nevertheless Ken and his staff managed to convince seven minority teachers to disregard any feelings of discomfort and come to Wallingford. That folks, is a significant achievement. It is not the only positive step the school system has taken to increase diversity. Under Ken’s leadership the Wallingford school district has become involved in an ongoing Anti-Defamation League program aimed at curtailing bullying. The superintendent also played a major role in getting published a diversity outreach booklet that provides guidelines to increase minority hiring in all areas of municipal employment. He has reached out to and established a strong relationship with the town’s significant Hispanic population. Ken’s contributions have not gone unnoticed by the leaders of the diversity movement in Wallingford. During his well-publicized problems with the outgoing BOE they rushed to show their support. “For the first time, the minority community feels like it has a voice,” wrote Wallingford Coalition for Unity Chairman Robbie Robinson in a letter of support for Ken. “The word is getting out and positive things are being said about Wallingford and race.” “I believe (losing Ken) would be ... a serious blow to the education of the children of Wallingford,” The Rev. Brendan McCormick, rector of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church and a long-time civil rights activist, wrote in a separate letter. You see folks, actions do speak louder than words. Ted Moynihan is a columnist for the Record-Journal. To reach him by e-mail: tfmoynihan@webtv.net |
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