The color of the landscaper is more important than student achievement

The News & Record's "Inside Scoop" blog is featuring a question...what do YOU think when you think of Guilford County? Well, to me, I think of one thing...how we are quickly becoming the laughing stock of the state with embarrassing politicians who do nothing but waste your taxpayer money, engage in corruption and race bait.

And another example of race baiting took place again last night at a GCS Board meeting in which an interesting exchange took place between new Dist. 5 board member Paul Daniels and vice-chairman Amos Quick (Dist. 9) over...the color of a landscaper.

During a weird meeting in which discussions took place ranging from schools being a day shy of being taken over by the state, to more funding being allocated for Montessori programs to what to do about daily cafeteria leftovers (what????) to SMOD, Daniels and Quick bumped heads over a groundskeeping contract.

Today's News & Record:

The school board meeting also included a brief discussion about the school system's practice of awarding 12 percent of its contracts to minority-owned businesses. The issue came up during the approval of a contract for groundskeeping services.

Confused by an abbreviation noting the business was owned by a white woman, Daniels said he failed to see how "we can become race-blind and gender-neutral" when the system continues to note such items in the contract process. His comments came minutes after several members of local minority-owned businesses praised the school system for its efforts to work with them more.

The state requires the school system to set a goal percentage for minority-owned businesses in construction and renovation projects.

The school board set its goal at 12 percent.

The board also set a self-imposed goal of using minority-owned and women-owned businesses for goods and services.

School staff also reminded the school board that this contractor was the lowest responsible bidder for the service and previously had held the contract.

Before voting, Quick addressed Daniels' comments, saying the history of inequality now makes it necessary to discuss race and gender. He also noted that state and federal laws require government organizations to include a percentage of minority- and women-owned businesses in contracted services.

Daniels later said he believes the school board doesn't need to consider racial history because some amount of racial equality has been reached.

"I think most people looking around Guilford County, they think if we're not there, we're pretty close," Daniels said.

He also added that he believes most women-owned businesses are actually owned by men.

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Have we not come farther than this in 2009? Because it is becoming harder and harder to raise my daughter in this area. Amos Quick, who rails on and on about student achievement, is once again aligning with the Deena Hayes faction of the School Board and loses sight of the big picture, quickly.

If this contractor came in under budget and has previously held this particular contract, why the need for a discussion? Kudos to Daniels for calling Amos on the carpet in saying that we need to become a race-blind and a gender-neutral society. That's what I'm trying to teach my daughter. Unfortunately, I have to work much harder at it following meetings like this.

E.C. :)