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8303873

White, John Henry, Jr.

AN E X A M IN A T IO N OF TH E S A LA B ILITY OF A SYSTEMS PLAN FOR
PROGRAM DEVELO PM ENT

Michigan State University

University
Microfilms
International

Ph.D.

300 N. Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, M I 48106

1982

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AN EXAMINATION OF THE SALABILITY OF A SYSTEMS PLAN
FOR PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT

By
John H. White

A DISSERTATION

Submitted to
Michigan State U niversity
in p a rtia l fu lfillm e n t o f the requirements
fo r the degree o f
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
Department o f Adm inistration and Curriculum
1982

ABSTRACT
AN EXAMINATION OF THE SALABILITY OF A SYSTEMS
PLAN FOR PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT
By
John H. White

The purpose o f th is evaluative study was to describe a model
fo r program development in a public-school d i s t r i c t .

This model,

the West Bloomfield School D is t r ic t Systems Plan fo r Program Develop­
ment, was designed by Superintendent Jerry J . Herman and directed by
the researcher from 1974 to 1979.
The researcher id e n tifie d s c h o o l-d is tric t superintendents,
other executives in leadership p o sitions, and adm inistrators who par­
tic ip a te d in the planning process and selected a sample fo r interviews
and a mail survey.

He recorded th e ir questions and concerns.

These

data, along with the observations the in ves tig a to r made as a p a r t ic i­
pant in the systems-plan model, constituted the basis fo r the conclu­
sions and recommendations.
A record o f the a c tiv itie s th a t took place during the plan­
ning process is presented in the d is s e rta tio n so th a t s c h o o l-d is tric t
adm inistrators may decide i f the model is salable to them and i f
re p lic a tio n is possible.
The findings indicated there are three major areas o f concern,
which incorporate the questions asked by the adm inistrators:

John H. White
1.

The amount o f time required to complete the planning

process was considered excessive.
2.

Acquiring enough personnel to carry out the a c tiv itie s

o f the planning process was d i f f i c u l t .
3.

Financial support was perceived to be c r it ic a l to the

success of the process and, a t the same tim e, unattainable.
The in v e s tig a to r's conclusions were based on the success with
which the West Bloomfield School D is t r ic t completed a long-range plan
and developed educational programs.
1.

School d is tr ic ts have s im ila r needs, regardless o f size or

population.
2.

The amount o f time required fo r program development is

d ire c tly rela te d to the number o f people involved in the planning
process.
3.

Leadership and commitment to systematic planning must be

provided by the superintendent and the board o f education in order fo r
the model to be a successful means o f program development.
4.

C itize n p a rtic ip a tio n in the group a c tiv itie s o f the

planning process is c r it ic a l to the successful development of programs
and the improvement o f public a ttitu d e s toward the school d i s t r ic t .
5.

A s k i l l f u l group-dynamics consultant is essential to the

successful use o f people making decisions and recommending plans fo r
the fu tu re .
6.

Management by objectives is a systematic method by which

s c h o o l-d is tric t adm inistrators can successfully a tta in goals estab­
lished fo r program improvement.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

S urely, the hundreds o f people involved in the West Bloomfield
Long Range Planning P ro ject deserve c r e d it fo r being a p a rt o f th is
e v a lu a tiv e study.

The students, parents, teachers, and adm inistrators

who p a rtic ip a te d in the p ro ject and w illin g ly responded to my in q u irie s
deserve my g ra titu d e .

E s p e c ia lly , I want to thank Dr. Jerry J . Herman

fo r his encouragement th a t I complete th is d is s e rta tio n and doctoral
program.

His advice and frien d sh ip w ill be cherished longa f t e r

he

is

commended fo r the authorship o f the Systems Plan Model.
To Dr. Moore, my guidance committee chairperson, I express my
appreciation fo r his patience and acceptance o f an idea th a t may w ell
have died long before i t

became the subject o f th is study.

To

Dr. Featherstone fo r his

d e d ic atio n , to D r. Lezotte fo r his persistence,

and to Dr. Hamlin fo r his d iv e rs ity I wish to say thank you.

To

Sue Cooley, my e d ito r and fr ie n d , from whom I learned a great deal
about w r itin g , I d ire c t my g ra titu d e .
And to Barbara, my w ife , and Jo and B rian , ny c h ild re n , I
rededicate my lo ve.

I f I could retu rn the many " lib r a r y hours" away

from home and fa m ily , i t would be a small exchange fo r th e ir tolerance
and understanding o f my needs.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page
LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................

v

LIST OF APPENDICES..........................................................................................

vi

Chapter
I.

II.

......................................................................................

1

Purpose of the S t u d y ..................................................................
The P ro blem ......................................................................................
Exploratory Questions ..................................................................
Background o f the S tu d y ..............................................................
D elim itations o f the Study ......................................................
D e fin itio n o f Terms ......................................................................
O v e r v ie w ..........................................................................................

1
2
3
4
7
7
10

.....................................................

11

INTRODUCTION

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

The Development o f Systematic Planning .............................
The Emergence o f Educational Planning .................................
The Concept o f Organizational Structures
.........................
T h e -Id e n tific a tio n o f Organizations and Environments .
Observers, P a rtic ip a n ts , and Organizations .....................
Understanding Organizations ......................................................
Dissemination ..................................................................................
The Recognition o f Educational Organizations .................
Adm inistrator A ttitudes and Organizational Climate . .
The Organization as a P ro c e s s .................................................
Accounting fo r Results ..............................................................
C itize n P a rtic ip a tio n in Educational Planning .................
Form ality in School Organizational Management and
Educational Planning ..............................................................
Planners and Planning in Educational Settings .................
Summary..............................................................................................
III.

DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY

11
12
13
15
15
17
19
19
21
23
25
27
31
32
34

.................................................

38

The West Bloomfield Model and Process
.....................
Commitment and Time L i n e s ..........................................................
Financial Resources From an External Source .....................
A Demonstration of Enthusiasm fo r Planning .....................

38
40
44
47

iii

Page

IV .

V.

V is its and Record Keeping ..........................................................
Planning fo r the F u tu r e ..............................................................
Confirmation o f a Long-Range P l a n .........................................
Final Phases o f the Systems P l a n .........................................
An Example o f the Model's R e s u lts .........................................

50
51
53
55
58

BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON RESPONDENTS UHO PARTICIPATED
IN THE S T U D Y ..................................................................................

61

Superintendent Interviews ..........................................................
Mail Survey o f Superintendents .............................................
P articip an t Interviews ..............................................................
A n a l y s i s ..........................................................................................

61
68
75
80

FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

.........................

92

F i n d i n g s ..........................................................................................
Conclusions and Recommendations .............................................

93
95

ADDENDUM...............................................................................................................

109

APPENDICES...........................................................................................................

Ill

BIBLIOGRAPHY

203

......................................................................................................

iv

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure
1.
2.

Page
A Thematic Representation o f 60 Years o f SystematicPlanning Theory ..........................................................................

36

S ixty Years o f Systematic-Planning Theorists ...................

37

V

LIST OF APPENDICES

Appendix
A.

Page

WEST BLOOMFIELD PUBLIC SCHOOLS MODEL— SYSTEMS PLAN
FOR PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT .................................................................

112

B.

PROJECT DIRECTOR'S LETTER TO SELECTED PARTICIPANTS

. . .

114

C.

LONG-RANGE PLANNING PROGRAM— FIRST MEETING AGENDA . . . .

117

D.

STATE OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT RESPONSE FORMS .............................

119

E.

STATE OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT SUMMARY

124

F.

LONG-RANGE PLANNING PROGRAM—SECOND MEETING AGENDA

G.

WORKSHOP ACTIVITY— PRIORITY RESOURCES .........................................

135

H.

COMMITTEE MEETING SCHEDULES ..............................................................

137

I.

REPORT OF VISITATIONS, CONFERENCES, AND WORKSHOPS . . . .

139

J.

FIVE-YEAR PLAN AND PUBLIC RELATIONS COMMITTEE CHARGE

141

K.

FIVE-YEAR PLANNING COMMITTEE MINUTES

L.

PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF FIVE-YEAR PLAN ANNOUNCEMENT

M.

PUBLIC DISCUSSION AGENDA

N.

1978 FIVE-YEAR PLANNING REPORT

0.

ADMINISTRATIVE COUNCIL REITERATION

.............................................

186

P.

GOAL RATING SHEET..................................................................................

191

Q.

MAIL SURVEY TO SUPERINTENDENT SAMPLE

.........................................

195

R.

SUPERINTENDENT'S RESPONSE FORM

.....................................................

197

S.

FOLLOW-UP INTERVIEW WITH PARTICIPATING ADMINISTRATORS
F O R M ......................................................................................................

199

SCHEMATIC REPRESENTATION OF WEST BLOOMFIELD SCHOOL
DISTRICT'S ACCOUNTABILITY PLAN .................................................

201

T.

.........................................
. . .

. .

.........................................
. . . .

133

143
146

..................................................................

148

.....................................................

150

vi

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION
There are as many ways to manage a public-school d i s t r ic t as
there are d is t r ic t s .

In many instances, the type o f management

concept being applied in a p a rtic u la r d is t r ic t is not easy to iden­
t i f y or describe.

G enerally, the management of an in d ivid u al d i s t r i c t ,

lik e th a t o f most kinds o f organizations, is an extension of the
b e lie fs and practices o f the ch ie f executive.
the c h ie f executive is the superintendent.

In school d is t r ic t s ,

Hence there are as many

management styles as there are superintendents.
Purpose of the Study
In th is study the researcher's purposes were (1) to describe the
a c tiv itie s th a t took place over a fo u r-ye ar period from 1974 through
1978, when the West Bloomfield Public School D is t r ic t o f Orchard Lake,
Michigan, implemented a systematic planning process and (2 ) to evaluate
how th a t process aided in the development o f programs designed to
meet the educational needs o f the community.
The ob jective o f th is description was to provide a planning
model fo r other school d is tr ic ts and to determine whether th a t model
was salable to superintendents o f d is tr ic ts throughout Michigan.
Many s c h o o l-d is tric t superintendents have id e n tifie d the problem
addressed in the study as being d ire c tly related to inadequate or
1

2

nonexistent planning.

The need fo r planning is evident in a ll p u b lic -

school d is tr ic ts and in most other educational in s titu tio n s as w e ll.
The researcher made th a t assumption a fte r assessing the d ire condi­
tions th a t have forced d rastic curtailm ent o f the resources to school
d is tr ic ts in recent years.
The Problem
H is to r ic a lly , s c h o o l-d is tric t adm inistrators have followed
separate and d is tin c t management styles and have not developed
m utually acceptable processes fo r a tta in in g th e ir goals.

Even more

im portant, many d i s t r ic t administrators do not adopt goals and have
no systematic approach to planning fo r the fu tu re .
The importance o f the description undertaken in th is study
has been demonstrated in several d is tr ic ts in Michigan in which the
model has been adopted e ith e r p a r t ia lly or t o t a ll y .

Further impor­

tance w ill be determined as other adm inistrators implement systematic
planning fo r program development in th e ir respective d is t r ic t s .
The compilation o f information in th is research includes those
events th a t took place during the four years a fte r February 1975, when
the West Bloomfield Systems Plan fo r Program Development was in tr o ­
duced to the public by it s author, Dr. Jerry J. Herman, Superintendent
o f Schools.

The period covered by the evaluative description

encompassed the span from public introduction o f the model and it s
subsequent adoption by the West Bloomfield School Board^ to the
This action was taken a t the regular meeting o f the Board
o f Education o f the West Bloomfield School D is t r ic t , March 3, 1975.
At the Board's request, Dr. Herman presented a b r ie f overview o f his

3

ex p iratio n o f federal funding and the researcher's term ination as
d ire c to r o f the pro ject in 1978.
Exploratory Questions
The in ves tig a to r posed e s s e n tia lly fiv e questions in th is
study:
1.

Can a public-school d is t r ic t o f moderate size and lim ite d

resources develop a process fo r program development?
2.

Can such a process become a model fo r other school

d is tric ts ?
3.

What theories o f ad m in istratio n , organizational c o n tro l,

planning, and management can be applied to public-school environments?
4.

Is systematic planning a means fo r reaching goals in

public-school d is tric ts ?
5.

Is c itiz e n p a rtic ip a tio n a v ita l ingredient in the

process?
The general th eo retical background of public-school planning
and management lie s somewhere between the business-management and
sociological theory o f the tw entieth-century b e h av io rists.

Few, i f

re p o rt, e n title d "Model Systems Plan fo r Program Development,"
which was o r ig in a lly d istrib u ted to Board members a t the February 17,
1975, meeting. The in ten tio n o f th is review was to apprise members
o f the audience o f the phases proposed fo r th is fiv e -y e a r develop­
ment plan. In the ensuing discussion, various Board members stated
th e ir views, and Dr. Herman responded to th e ir questions about the
plan. Following discussion, there was a motion by Mr. Metzger, sup­
ported by Mr. Brewster, th a t the adm inistration proceed w ith the
Model Systems Plan fo r Program Development as presented a t the
February 17, 1975, meeting and again a t the March 3 meeting. Motion
c a rried 7-0.

4

any, fundamentals o f organizational management have been developed
s p e c ific a lly fo r public-school d is t r ic t s .

The expectations imposed

on educational adm inistrators have caused them to gain th e ir tra in in g
and experience under the guidance o f theory th a t only suggests per­
tinence to th e ir s p e c ific ro le s .

The need fo r c le a rly defined, tested

models fo r the management o f school d is tr ic ts and educational programs
is rooted in the premises o f educational leadership, which are often
learned but seldom prove e ffe c tiv e .
The description contained in th is d is s e rta tio n deals with
leadership q u a litie s and c h a racteristics but in no way sp ecifies the
best ch a ra c te ris tic s fo r a ll leaders and a ll environments.

Essen­

t i a l l y , the w r ite r acknowledges the v e r s a t ilit y o f leadership styles
among a group o f adm inistrators who struggled to implement a modified
form o f management by objectives; he s p e c ific a lly describes the leader­
ship a c tiv itie s required fo r successful adoption o f the Systems Plan
Model.
The needs o f the West Bloomfield School D is t r ic t were not
unlike those o f other d is t r ic t s , but the manner in which they were
id e n tifie d was unique.

Further, the means by which goals and objec­

tives were established in the West Bloomfield School D is t r ic t were
novel, and the manner by which these goals and objectives were
attain ed remains unique.
Background o f the Study
Readers w ill best be able to determine th e ir in te re s t in
the model i f they know something about the West Bloomfield community,

5

which lie s in Oakland County, about 15 miles north and east o f
D e tr o it, Michigan.

West Bloomfield Township became a m atter o f

record in 1823, when the f i r s t farm properties were s e ttle d by fami­
lie s seeking f e r t i l e land fo r apple orchards.

By 1923, the r o llin g

woodlands were summer and weekend vacation resorts fo r D e tro it's
a fflu e n t society members.

Numerous lakes cover more than o n e-h alf

o f the area now ca lled the West Bloomfield School D is t r ic t , which was
incorporated in 1949.
According to the 1980 census, a population o f 30,000 people
resided in approximately 10,000 dw ellings:

1,200 were sm all, restored

cottages in the v illa g e o f Keego Harbor, 200 were e s ta te -lik e mansions
in Orchard Lake V illa g e , and the remainder were in new.subdivisions
completed fo r the urban escapees who worked in or near D e tro it and
could affo rd expensive homes.

In 1980, 6,000 students, in kindergar­

ten through tw e lfth grade, attended fiv e elementary schools, two
middle schools {grades 6 - 8 ) , and one high school.

The f i r s t school,

now an elementary school, was constructed in 1923; the la s t , the high
school, was b u ilt in 1970.

Two hundred seventy-nine c e r t ifie d teach­

ers comprised the professional s t a f f in 1980.

Nineteen adminis­

tra to rs served the schools as members of the professional team.

The

superintendent, three assistan t superintendents, three d ire c to rs ,
eight p rin c ip a ls , and four assistan t p rin cipals constituted the West
Bloomfield ad m in istrative team.
Public-school d is tr ic ts are quick to adopt the most recent
management innovation i f i t promises to improve student performance.
A change in ad m in istrative format is less frequent and s ig n ific a n tly

6

more d i f f i c u l t to bring about.

With considerable support from the

community, the West Bloomfield School D is t r ic t was able to change its
management system and, over a period o f tim e, to a ffe c t student
performance through the e f f ic ie n t adm inistration o f educational pro­
grams.

During the same period, fin a n c ia l subsidy from Elementary

and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), T i t le IV-C funds aided in the
refinement and evaluation o f the Systems Plan Model.

The w r ite r

speculated th at the description and analysis o f the events occurring
before and during th a t funding period would provide important d ire c ­
tio n fo r other school d is t r ic t s .
A primary purpose o f ESEA, T i t l e IV-C funding made a v a ila b le
to local school d is tr ic ts under the auspices o f the Michigan Depart­
ment o f Education was to provide the means fo r developing a model fo r
program planning and evaluation and to disseminate the findings of
such program planning to other agencies.

During the 1977-78 school

year, the Department o f Education selected the West Bloomfield
School D is t r ic t

as one o f six d is tr ic ts in the s ta te fo r one year

o f development.

The school d is t r ic t received $40,000 fo r continua­

tio n o f the already designed, but fin a n c ia lly stagnated, planning
model.
In 1977-78, th is w r ite r was employed as pro ject manager fo r
the continuation of those phases o f the program not activated a f te r
1976, when the d i s t r ic t was unable to provide the necessary fin a n c ia l
resources.

The federal in terven tio n lasted only one year.

I t should

be noted th a t the local d is t r ic t had been able to carry on the systems

7

plan fo r two years before receiving ESEA fin a n c ia l support and has
since re v ita liz e d the plan with local finances.
Del im itation s of the Study
I t is important to

know the reasonsbehind d e lim itin g

the

study to the years between 1974 and 1979.
1.

The w r ite r a r b it r a r ily selected a time frame to encompass

those events th a t could be described in one concise document.
2.

The a c tiv itie s

described coincided w ith the w r ite r 's

tenure as an adm in istrative assistan t to the model's author and
promoter, Superintendent Herman.
3.

The time coincided with an unchanged ro ster o f adminis­

tr a tiv e personnel in the school d is t r ic t and with a constantly changing
c itiz e n ry o f well-educated people.
4.

The observations made by the w r ite r were firs t-h a n d ones

and were based on d ire c t involvement in the Systems Plan, both as a
d ire c to r and as a p a rtic ip a n t.
5.

The major stages of the model had been activated and, at

le a s t in p a rt, completed to a point a t which subsystems generated as
a re s u lt of the systematic planning process were ongoing and f lu id .
D e fin itio n of Terms
The terms used throughout th is d is se rta tio n are no longer
u n fam ilia r to the teachers, students, c itiz e n s , and adm inistrators
involved in the Systems Plan a t West Bloomfield.

To the reader

fa m ilia r with planning models, management theory, and organizational
change s tra te g ie s , the terms are commonplace.

I t is the reader who

8

is un fam iliar with the aforementioned concepts fo r whom the d e fin i­
tions w ill be m o s t,b e n e fic ia l.
Change—A measurable d ifferen ce in the manner in which events
and personnel are managed.
Consultant—A person who o ffe rs advice or assists in the
adm inistration of change, usually fo r a fe e .
Feedback— Information o f use to those monitoring an organiza­
tio n 's processes, usually "fed back" by recip ien ts o f service.
Goal—That which is specified as the outcome o f action planned
and undertaken.
Group process—The in te ra c tio n o f two or more persons sim i­
la r ly in clined to accomplish a p a rtic u la r task.
Management by ob jectives—A system in which people are held
accountable fo r reaching o b jec tive s, upon which they usually agree
jo in t ly with th e ir superiors.
Model--A graphic or n a rra tiv e guide th a t outlines the means by
which goals and objectives may be a tta in e d .
Need—That which requires change, usually a deficiency in an
organization 's acq u isitio n s.
O bjective—A measurable condition or end product; usually
part o f a la rg e r goal, such as in the management-by-objectives format.
Organization--The in te rre la te d people and a c tiv itie s directed
toward the attainm ent o f common goals.
Phase—The p art of a model th at can be described in terms o f
a s p e c ific time and placement in a series o f events.

9

Planning—Strategies to obtain resources needed fo r goal
attainm ent.
Program—A d ivisio n o f personnel or related a c tiv itie s
directed toward a p a rtic u la r o b jec tive .
Role— The behavior expected o f an in d ivid u al assuming respon­
s i b i l i t y in a group.
S c ie n tific management—A management theory in which achieving
worker e ffic ie n c y through rewards is emphasized.
Shared decision making— Instances in which p a rtic ip a n ts from
m ultiple levels make decisions about fu tu re a c t iv it ie s .
Subsystem—An in teg ral part o f the to ta l system, y e t s e lf sustaining and having p a rtic u la r objectives.
Survey—A sample or to ta l c o lle c tio n o f inform ation gathered
from a designated population; usually a t tit u d in a l.
Systems approaches—The processes resu ltin g from applied
systems theory.
Systems theory—AH th a t is encompassed by an organized
e f f o r t , which includes in p u t, process, and output.

The emphasis on

the relatio n sh ip between organizations and th e ir environments is
apparent.

The terms "systems planning" and "systematic planning"

are used interchangeably with "systems theory" throughout th is d is ­
s e rta tio n .
Team management— D ein d ivid u alizatio n o f roles and mutual
commitment to goal attainm ent.

10

Overview
Chapter I included a statement o f the purpose o f the study
and the questions to be answered in the d is s e rta tio n .

I t also

included background inform ation about the study and i t s lim ita tio n s .
D e fin itio n s o f terms re la te d to educational-program management and
systematic planning constituted the fin a l p a rt o f the chapter.
The lit e r a t u r e reviewed in Chapter I I includes w ritin g s about o rgani­
zation al ad m in is tra tio n , management, planning, and public re la tio n s .
The methodology used in conducting the study is described in Chapter
III.

Chapter IV contains a description o f the school adm inistrators

who took p a rt in the study and an accounting o f the data they gen­
erated.

Chapter V contains conclusions and recommendations based

on the in v e s tig a to r's fin d in g s .

CHAPTER I I

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
The Development o f Systematic Planning
Determining when w rite rs began to provide lit e r a tu r e r e le ­
vant to systematic planning required an examination of general systems
theory in physics and biology.

During the 1920s, a broad view o f

relationships between the elements w ith in a body o f knowledge provided
a means o f looking a t interconnections common to a ll sciences.

In the

applied f ie ld o f engineering, a p rim arily mathematical approach to
systems analysis was generated.

General systems theory, however,

resulted from continued e ffo rts over the next h a lf century and has
made possible an approach using the concept in any model represent­
ing the management o f people, machines, m a te ria ls , money, and/or
time.
L ite ra tu re relevan t to systematic planning fo r educational
programs encompassed more than 50 years preceding the 1980s.

During

the 1930s, social researchers developed the methods o f f ie ld observa­
tio n used by p a rtic ip a n t observers o f organizations experiencing
change.

The key instrument fo r recording the p a rtic ip a tiv e process

was the in te rv ie w , a means by which observer p a rticip an ts could
gather perceptions o f change expressed by observed p a rtic ip a n ts .
The in tr in s ic elements o f change constituted the d e fin itio n
o f innovative organizations posed by Linton (1936).
11

He labeled these

12

elements form, fu n ctio n , and meaning.

The c la s s ific a tio n o f conse­

quences re s u ltin g from organizational change was less precise in the
1930s than i t is today.

Assuming th a t desirable resu lts would be

forthcoming when successful e ffo rts were duplicated, some a u th o ritie s
in adverten tly overemphasized the adoption o f models fo r e ffe c tin g
change.

Survey-research methods were inappropriate fo r determining

consequences, and measurement o f success was d i f f i c u l t because o f the
time th a t elapsed between the onset o f a change and when the conse­
quences were observable.
Systems approaches, concepts, and models th a t depended on the
q u a lita tiv e in te ra c tio n o f people were developed in the 1940s.

Wiener

(1946) refin ed the science o f cybernetics with his studies on the
transmission and processing o f information w ithin the ac tiv e parts of
a to ta l organization.

Weber (1947) described the social structure of

bureaucracy as a major force on the individ uals and processes w ithin
an organization.
The Emergence o f Educational Planning
By 1949, guidelines prepared fo r s t a f f management appeared in
medical, m ilita r y , and human-resource-management lit e r a t u r e .

W riters

who preceded the educational-planning era p rim a rily defined the methods
by which an in s titu tio n plans, operates, and controls it s a c tiv itie s
in order to meet it s ob jectives— th a t i s , by using human, m a te ria l,
equipment, inform ation, and money resources.
Simon (1959) argued th a t the greater the number of parts a
system tends to develop, the greater it s complexity and the a b ilit y

13

to produce change w ith in i t s e l f to improve goal attainm ent.

He

researched in s titu tio n a liz e d structures and processes designed to
define and a tta in system atically established goals.

Simon found th a t

organizations th a t generated policy stra teg ies and decision-making
procedures incorporating e ffe c tiv e c itiz e n p a rtic ip a tio n demonstrated
b e tte r mechanisms fo r feedback o f evalu ative inform ation than firms
th a t did not fo llow these practices.
The Concept o f Organizational Structures
In the e a rly 1950s, behavioral s c ie n tis ts viewed general
systems theory as a basic approach to providing a framework fo r
organizational concepts.

At Wayne State U niversity a general system

o f education, termed the "education sciences" ( H i l l , 1972), was
developed.

I t contained a s t r ic t set o f p rin cip les focusing on an

essential step in systematic planning--the establishment o f program
goals and o b jec tive s.

As observers put the framework to use, they

were expected to record events, which, in tu rn , provided d e tailed
d escrip tion s, charts demonstrating the flow o f tim e, and simple
designs depicting relation ship s between events.

In education, the

beginnings o f applied systems approaches lacked sophisticated mathe­
matical models.

Yet they were ju s t as serviceable fo r those who

valued the generic elements o f persons, processes, and properties as
fo r those who preferred to evaluate program successes by observable
products.
W riters during the 1950s recorded organizational successes
in which individ uals were reported to perform fo r the b e n e fit o f

14

organization al needs.

They maintained th a t fr ic t io n between in d i­

viduals and organizations can be eith e r c re a tiv e or d estru ctive.

Ryan

(1950) attempted to describe d ire c t and in d ire c t functions o f conse­
quences as a means o f providing a measure of a d a p ta b ility fo r models.
Using an anthropological approach, he condemned descrip tive studies
o f innovative organizations i f they yielded only id io syn cratic data
from which i t was d i f f i c u l t to make g en eralizatio n s.
A segment o f social science devoted to the id e n tific a tio n and
descrip tion o f models o f p a rtic ip a tiv e stru ctu re emerged and became
known as human ecology.

The human ecologists did not c le a rly id e n tify

the o rd e r, perspective, or lim ita tio n s o f p a rtic ip a tiv e organizations.
Katz and Lazarsfeld (1955) d e a lt with the influence persons w ith in an
organization have on the behaviors and a ttitu d e s o f one another.

They

reached l i t t l e , i f any, agreement about the kind o f behavior th at
in d ica ted a propensity fo r adopting innovations.

The end o f the

1950s brought some merging o f theoretical explanations fo r situ atio n s
and a ttitu d e s exem plified in the best conditions fo r acceptance of
innovation.
Churchman (1957) defined operations research as a tool fo r
performance a c c o u n ta b ility .

He incorporated the same basic com­

ponents of the planning concept as the systems approach and preceded
by 20 years the merging of the d e fin itio n s o f planning and management
by ob jectives (MBO).

He fu rth e r pointed out th a t the systems approach

can be used to study problems in various fie ld s .

Its use in educa­

tio n , employing the methods and techniques o f modern management and

15

allowing fo r the problems unique to education, has helped to define
the content of systematic planning fo r educational organizations.
The Id e n tific a tio n of Organizations and Environments
Bendix and Selznick (1958) raised major questions about the
specific ways in which environments

dominate organizations.

They

contended th a t the most forceful individual has l i t t l e influence on
organizational success, compared to the provocation of the environ­
ment in which an organization e x is ts .

These investigators saw complex

environmental ch aracteristics as being beyond the control of organiza­
tional leaders.
During the 1960s, l i t t l e was w ritten about how organizations
or t h e ir environments can change over time and how the in teraction
can be valuable f o r study and r e p lic a tio n .

The proponents of goal-

settin g models and the in teractio n process a ffe c tin g the members of
an organization received considerable a tte n tio n .

Thompson (1967)

recognized the s h iftin g variables o f a tr u ly open systems approach to
organizational change.

In recognizing those variables th a t are not

within the control of the members of an organization, Thompson said
th at the internal structure or the external environment of an organi­
zation is never completely understood.

He cited the adaptation to

changing environments as the real measure of organizational e f f e c t iv e ­
ness and su rv iva l.
Observers, P articip an ts, and Organizations
Weick (1967) described organizations as loosely coupled
systems in which few individuals care about every dimension of the

16

organization's operation.

He perceived educational organizations

as being no d i ffe r e n t in structure than other organizations.

The

authors of theories explaining organizational structure recommended
no best way to organize; rath er, they accepted the idea th a t the
structure of an organization depends on numerous determinants.

The

question of what the determinants are rests with those who observe as
well as those who p a rtic ip a te in organizations.
Humanists Bennis (1966) and McGregor (1960) predicted the
downfall of the bureaucracy; they recognized th at the lack of values
and b e lie fs is e s s e n tia lly the greatest weakness in the bureaucratic
structure.

The evidence they cited indicated that tumultuous environ­

ments have made organizations adopt frameworks and a c t iv i t ie s re q u ir­
ing highly sophisticated interpersonal s k i l l s and consciousness among
the leaders.

These authors portrayed strong leaders w ithin an organi­

zation as being capable o f manipulating the social se ttin g of an
organization.
Le a v itt (1965) focused on working with individuals and groups
of people to accomplish organizational goals.

Strategies th a t gave

specific techniques fo r e ffe c tin g change in organizations based on
behavioral-science principles incorporated "organizational-development"
practices th a t provided a way to deal with problems in organizational
processes.

McGregor (1960) categorized types of relationships between

organizations and t h e ir environments, but lit e r a t u r e dealing with the
opportunities and constraints that environments impose on organiza­
tions did not appear u n til the 1970s.

17

The view o f MBO as a means of improving school-management
systems re-emerged shortly before the mid-1960s.

Oxhandler (1964)

researched how various systems approaches could be applied to specific
school operations.

His evidence supported the perception th at MBO

improves schools and t h e ir organizational stru ctu re.

Prim arily a

r e ite ra tio n of the writings o f Wiener (1940), the d e fin itio n of
general systems theory was refined when studies o f information trans­
mission and processing became the focal point in analyses o f the
control of active parts of an organization.

Within the d e fin itio n s

of a system, MBO proponents perceived a population of persons and
properties as a v it a l and basic ingredient in describing the frame­
work of any organization.
Understanding Organizations
Hersey and Blanchard (1960) emphasized the need to understand
organizational behavior and stressed that an expert in organizational
development must learn and apply ce rtain s k i l l s .

They placed less

emphasis on the effects of an organization's environment and more on
the philosophy th a t the in ternal components of and the people involved
in an organization are the most c r i t i c a l ingredients fo r successful
goal attainment.
In 1962, Rogers predicted that a second edition of his study
of innovative practices would be necessary 10 to 15 years l a t e r .

He

offered a synthesis of contemporary w ritings and made suggestions fo r
social research regarding the d iffusion of innovations.

The study

and expansion of his propositions led him to prepare th is second

18

editio n by 1970.

Whereas Rogers noted a lack of succinct research in

the f i e l d , in the second editio n he stated th a t there had been a
300-percent increase in publications regarding diffusion o f innova­
tions.
From studies dealing with organizational change, Rogers con­
cluded th at there is less of a discrepancy between the synthesis o f
diffusion and adoption of innovations than there is between knowledge
and understanding of the process by which authority decisions are
made and organizational changes implemented.
basic approaches to organizational change:

Rogers presented two
(1) the a u th o rita tiv e

approach, in which decisions are made c e n tr a lly , with others obeying
under an unequal d is trib u tio n of power; and (2) the p a rtic ip a tiv e
approach, in which decisions are made with a great amount of consul­
ta tio n and a wide sharing of power.
Rogers stated th at the l a t t e r approach was less l i k e l y than
the former to be discontinued.

Examining the stra teg ic involvement

of every individual in enduring organizations, he uncovered discrep­
ancies between attitudes and overt behavior directed toward adoption
or rejectio n of an innovation.

This dissonance he a ttrib u te d to the

various kinds of informal practices, norms, and social relationships
among the members of an organization.

The more formal social system,

which must be d e lib e ra te ly established fo r achieving certain predeter­
mined goals, usually provides fo r success.

Even though the conse­

quences of innovation have not been studied s u f f ic ie n t ly , i t has been
shown th a t a system of prescribed ro le s , authority stru ctu re , and
formally established rules and regulations governs the behavior o f an

19

organization's members and provides a model fo r others.

Such a

systems model is the subject o f the evaluative description presented
in th is disse rta tio n .
Dissemination
A review of the l i t e r a t u r e of the 1960s provided lim ite d
information about the adoption o f educational-management models, but
there were some accounts o f e ffo r ts to disseminate models.

Gideonese

(1969) made the f i r s t attempt to give a comprehensive treatment of
educational dissemination and the capacity of state agencies fo r
educational research.

His h is to ric a l overview of sp ecific treatments

administered under the guise of educational program development pro­
vided a compilation of sponsors, performers, resources, substantive
content, and policy implications designated as adoptable models fo r
school d i s t r ic t s in the United States.

Using data compiled from the

records of the U.S. O ffice of Education, Gideonese provided evidence
th a t only 7 to 10 percent of the to ta l U.S. O ffice o f Education
research-and-development funding aided dissemination a c t i v i t i e s .

This

finding supported the concern expressed by w riters during the previous
20 years— th a t s u ffic ie n t fin a n c ia l resources were not made available
fo r educational research.
The Recognition of Educational Organizations
The w r it e r 's search fo r meaningful studies about organiza­
tio nal structure and the effects of recognizable determinants reached
fr u it io n in the writings o f the 1970s.

Further, the e f f o r t to d i f ­

fe re n tia te between the management styles of school organizations was

20

made easier by the l i t e r a t u r e of th at decade.

For instance, Freeman

and Hannan (1975) examined the size o f adm inistrative components in
school d is t r ic t s facing changing enrollments and credited the deter­
mination of size to a p o lit ic a l perspective.

Conflicts between

p o lit ic a l forces were highlighted when Perrow (1972) discussed the
functions of organizations and described the imperfections o f bureau­
c ra tic structures, in which individuals need to be controlled and
managed so as to ensure the pursuit o f organizational purposes, not
personal ones.

Perrow perceived organizations as arenas o f ir r a t io n a l

decision making, wherein various persons and groups simply p a rtic ip a te
without common purposes.
The role of conventionality w ith in school organizations was
established when Meyer (1976) elaborated on the idea th a t school d is ­
t r i c t s as in s titu tio n s are loosely lin ked organizations without rules
fo r even the practice of in s tru c tio n .

The real question is how such

segmented and uncoordinated organizations survive.

Meyer and Rowan

(1977) suggested that the answer lie s not in the success with which
a d i s t r i c t achieves internal coordination but in how well the struc­
ture conforms to in s tit u tio n a l rules as they e x is t at th at p a rtic u la r
time.
Control, which is e s s e n tia lly what rules are designed to
a ffo r d , has long been a central theme in the l i t e r a t u r e on organiza­
tio n s .

Members of the hierarchy of au tho rity e f fe c tiv e ly convey

objectives, monitor actions, and evaluate results only i f there is a
m ultistructured linkage o f units or sets o f units conforming to a
common set of guidelines.

Ouchi (1976) fo r th r ig h tly stated th at

21

organizational success depends d ir e c tly on how managers f i l t e r guide­
lines f o r action through the many levels o f an organization.
Administrator Attitudes and Organizational Climate
The National School Public Relations Association (1978) com­
piled a series of guides to standardized practices within innovative
community-involvement projects.

Those organizations in which admin­

is tra to rs and managers appeared to be a c tiv e ly supporting change were
found to be successful.

I t was noted th at i f the climate o f an organi­

zation supported a large number of p a rtic ip a n ts , the prospect o f e ffe c ­
t iv e ly incorporating an innovation into standard practice was s i g n i f i ­
cantly increased.

Yet the w riters expressed concern fo r research needs

and diffusion of ideas among educational organizations because of the
discrepancies th a t e x is t between national p r io r it ie s and local user
needs fo r research and development.

Validated programs have become

the mode of diffusion of innovation, but information about these
exemplary programs is neither r e lia b le nor easily a v a ila b le .

A prac­

t i t i o n e r 's c a p a b ility to manage or administer an innovative project is
a measure of h is/her success a t developing a communication process
that provides another potential manager the c a p a b ility o f using
research-and-development r e s u lts .
Although there have been repeated e ffo r ts to standardize
measurement, or a t

least to conceptualize the e ffe c t o f research and

development, the issue o f selective versus comprehensive information
systems s t i l l needs resolution a f t e r two decades of continued a r t ic u la ­
tio n regarding observable weaknesses within the network of educational

22

organizations.

Information about the variety of services designed to

lin k organizations seeking model projects with those providing the
object of t h e ir search was the culmination o f elaborate e ffo rts by
Butler and Paisley (1975).

They c la s s ifie d more than 40 models by a

taxonomy developed in a unique project designed to analyze the levels
at which services were interfaced between sponsors and clien ts and to
determine the source of i n i t i a t i v e fo r undertaking services.
The lack of evidence o f evaluative techniques fo r control in
school systems p a ra lle ls the lack of evaluation o f school programs,
even when desirable results were obtained.

Although school systems

have survived as organizations through time, i t is also apparent th a t
th e ir survival commenced without the control mechanisms required by
organizational researchers.

Freeman (1975) described the complexities

of systems w ithin systems, making up an organization o f "Chinese boxes."
I t is th at theme of disjointed segments or disconnected subsystems
within an organization's structure th a t leads one to search fo r s t r a t e ­
gies of organizational control.

The rules and in terests th a t influence

an organization from outside have led researchers to propose means by
which organizational environments can be researched.

Meyer (1978)

distinguished between external environments and internal technologies,
the l a t t e r being a c t iv i t ie s continuing in an organization and con­
tr o lle d in t e r n a lly , even though control is not highly v is ib le .

This

theorizing about organizations as a c t i v i t y systems directed the th in k ­
ing o f scholars toward a concern fo r processes.

23

The Organization as a Process
Two social psychologists, Perrow (1970) and Hall (1977),
emphasized the role of key individuals as leaders and the internal
source of innovation and change.

They reported th a t a key ingredient

of organizational success is the willingness o f individuals to perform
only fo r the b e nefit of organizational needs.

These w riters fu rth e r

maintained th at f r i c t i o n between individuals and organizations can be
e ith e r creative or destructive.

Their observations supported the fin d ­

ings of adm inistrative sc ien tists Parsons (1956), Bendix (1960), and
Selznick ( I9 6 0 ) , who recognized the external environment as a major
force on the individuals in and the process of an organization.
Aldrich (1979) b u ilt on Thompson's open or natural model o f organiza­
tio ns, which formed the basic premises of organizational sociology.
He underscored the idea that the importance of processes lie s in analyz­
ing es s e n tia lly contradictory behavior and a c t i v i t i e s , which must be
pulled into a coordinated whole i f organizational goals are to be
reached.
I f one thinks about organizations as a c t iv i t y systems, as did
some w riters o f the 1970s such as Blau and Schoenherr (1971), one may
become overly concerned about processes, thereby becoming distracted
from the sociological emphasis.

Thompson (1967) focused on organi­

zations while concentrating on processes, which made i t possible fo r
a ll behaviors and a c t i v i t i e s generated in c o n flic t by organizational
members to jo in in a harmonious e n tity .

A major question raised by

the present w r it e r pertains to the sp ecific ways in which environments

24

rather than individuals are the dominant force a ffe c tin g organiza­
tional success.
Social-science theorists expounding on organizational
change and productivity have presented a number of propositions con­
cerning organizational process.

Most w riters have postulated th at

there are too many factors to cope with system atically.

Aldrich

(1979) submitted the central premise of an evolutionary view of
organizational change in a loosely united world.

There appears to be

l i t t l e s t a b i l i t y within systems; continuity is achieved when active
processes are directed toward a p a rtic u la r goal.
Buckley (1967) and Landau (1969) discussed the loose coupling
of organizational components and stated th a t there are too many
relationships between components to deal with them system atically.
These social-science th eorists treated organizational change as an
uncontrollable phenomenon th at occurs w ithin an organization whenever
an existing condition is altered and the manager or administrator of
an organization is urged to look a t one, several, or a l l of the
aspects o f the organization's tasks, stru ctu re , technology, and
people.

Others who stressed the loose coupling of organizational

components were Glassman (1973) and Weick (1976).

But i t was

Thompson's (1967) t r u ly open model o f organizational change th at
achieved prominence.

In recognizing those variables outside the

d ire c t control o f organizational members, he presented a model th at
did not take fo r granted any understood in ternal structure and,
f u r t h e r , did not assume the environment was a given condition.

This

25

adaptation to changing environments is a measure o f organizational
effectiveness and s u rv iv a l.
Thompson stated th a t there is no best path along which suc­
cessful organizations pass.

According to him, appropriateness o f

design and structure can only be assessed in l ig h t of the conditions
present fo r the organization.

The variables le a s t l i k e l y to be

controllable are those th a t e x is t in the organization's environment.
Judgments made by those involved in the administration o f organiza­
tions do, in f a c t , strongly influence the attainment o f goals and
depend on these in d iv id u a ls ' perceptions o f the environment.
In many ways, organizational theorists have ascertained th a t
the design and success of organizations vary g re a tly .

I t is l e f t to

the student and p r a c titio n e r of organizational processes to c l a r i f y
the methods that w i l l prevent the development of unsuccessful organi­
zations and w i l l aid in the development of successful ones.
Accounting fo r Results
Most studies of organizations reviewed f o r th is d isse rta tio n
were comparative in nature and suggested organizational models th a t
were f l e x i b l e , adaptable, and universal; a few offered sp ecific
guidelines fo r such models.

Descriptions o f these models were found

in the writings of proponents of management by objectives (MBO).
Bell (1974) expounded on the virtues o f MBO s p e c ific a lly
fo r school administrators.

E sse n tially , MBO provides a format fo r

performance accountability th at is applicable to school organiza­
tions.

The purposes of those objectives are to solve the problems o f

26

an educational in s tit u tio n at a p a rtic u la r time.

A concern o f those

who adopt MBO is marshalling th e ir resources according to p r i o r i t y .
Goals cannot be completed successfully i f the proper environment does
not e x is t; both external and in ternal conditions must be hospitable
to the process and products chosen to a tta in the objectives of the
organization.

When looking to models fo r management s tra te g ie s , one

must search fo r those a c tiv e ly operating in environments s im ila r to
th at of the organization considering adoption.
With respect to innovative approaches to solving problems in
educational organizations, many of the premises upheld by proponents
of change within organizations f e l l among descriptions of low produc­
t i v i t y and in e ffic ie n c y and were relegated to systems of information
d is trib u tio n w ithin and outside of organizations.

Innovative e ffo rts

to disseminate information not only serve as models fo r success but
also point out the need fo r methods of measuring and conceptualizing
the e f fe c t o f change.
In organizations, complete or incomplete records are main­
tained, depending on the degree of importance the directors o f the
respective programs attach to such records.

Directors with educational-

research or information-science backgrounds accept the need fo r coste ffic ie n c y data, whereas directors with c lin ic a l or humanistic
backgrounds tend to be skeptical of q u an tita tiv e approaches and
evaluate t h e ir operations on the basis of experiences with individual
c lie n ts .

These findings, as well as others, suggest to students of

diffusion th a t i t is impossible to ignore social relation s in studying
the spread of innovations.

27

C itizen P articipation in Educational Planning
One of the more p r o l i f i c a l l y researched topics of study in
the f i e l d o f educational planning has been c itiz e n p a rtic ip a tio n .
Seeming to have achieved importance in the fe d e ra l, s ta te , and local
government arenas, c itiz e n p a rtic ip a tio n has been responsible fo r
much reduction of tension in our society.

C itizen p a rtic ip a tio n in

any organization provides the potential fo r analyzing the organiza­
tio n 's influence on goal achievement and policy formulation.

In

schools and educational organizations, a basic management concept is
th at b e tter decisions are made when groups affected by the decision
are a c tiv e ly involved in id en tifyin g problems and determining solu­
tions.

Studies such as those conducted by researchers a t the Urban

In s tit u te (1970) have shown th a t c itiz e n p a rtic ip a tio n does work.
The e r r a t i c , misunderstood involvement of c itiz e n groups a t the federal
level has often overshadowed the results of more u t i l i t a r i a n , con­
tr o lla b le experiments with c itiz e n participants a t the local le v e l.
The organizational system in education was the primary
targ et o f change e ffo r ts reported by Benson (1971, 1977), Klingsborn
(1973), and P fe ffe r (1977).

Types of educational changes were simi­

la r ; these w riters placed them in two comprehensive categories:
(1) p o l i t i c a l , which involved educational goals being established as
public p o licy , and (2) knowledge, which involved learning how to
achieve goals th a t have already been established.

Because schools

are unique among organizations, the ongoing c o n flic t between profes­
sional particip ants and hierarchical organizational control was
evident in these studies.

28

Owens (1969) dealt with schools as people-changing organiza­
tio ns, and Steinhoff (1976) studied the diffuse and ambiguous goals
th e ir administrators s triv e to achieve.

Both Owens and Steinhoff (1976)

supported the contemporary motivation and social-systems theory
expressed by Lewin, Maslow, Herzberg, and McGregor.

Because schools

have es sen tia lly an involuntary c li e n t e le , Steinhoff pointed out the
likelihood th at they would not survive in conditions th a t depend on
a search fo r direction and purposefulness.

He believed th a t the low

internal interdependence so e a sily swayed by p o lit ic a l control is a
key reason fo r the low success of school organizations.
According to d issa tisfactio n theory, which is based on the
concept of p a rtic ip a tiv e representation of the c itiz e n ry in local
school d is tr ic ts (Lutz & Iannacone, 1978), the local school d i s t r i c t
is doomed as a democratic governmental u n it.

In his discussion of

the wide range o f theory assessing deviance, c o n f l ic t , and cu ltural
change, Levine (1978) proposed a dichotomy between hard and so ft
in s titu tio n s ; the former constrain and l i m i t behavior, whereas the
l a t t e r allow and encourage a structure wherein individuals express
th e ir own needs.

He suggested four basic characteristics necessary

fo r a model adopted to resolve c o n flic t and to cause change w ithin an
in s t it u t io n .

These characteristics contribute to the survival o f an

organization b u i l t on group p a rtic ip a tio n and social adaptation.
f i r s t c h a ra c te ris tic , persistence, sustains the other three:

The

order,

progress, and r e v it a liz a t io n .
There is a certain loose, disorganized q u a lity about c itiz e n
p a rtic ip a tio n in the governance of schools, which evaded a l l w ritte n

29

attempts to define its c h a ra c te ris tic s .

Those who have attempted to

define the problems related to control o f community-based organiza­
tions such as schools have fa ile d to reach consensus regarding c itiz e n
p a rtic ip a tio n .

The recent l it e r a t u r e mainly pertained to federal

policies and practices, even though local government control and it s
intended benefits must be incorporated in any d e fin itio n concerning
schools and educational organizations.

The q u a lity o f c itiz e n par­

tic ip a tio n is in sharp contrast to the kind of p a rtic ip a tio n —the
policies and practices of citizen s in the governance o f c it ie s and
s ta te s .
Moguluf

(1970)

f e l t that c itiz e n p a rtic ip a tio n is the

problem in tr a d itio n a l decision making.

However, he expressed o p ti­

mism th a t a systematic approach to using c itiz e n power would provide
b e tte r decisions th a t would be more palatable to the recipients of
the services of school organizations.
Perhaps a larg e r body of li t e r a t u r e regarding the policy
and practice of c itiz e n p a rtic ip a tio n exists than what this in v e s ti­
gator was able to uncover.

However, the fa c t remains th at c it iz e n

p a rtic ip a tio n is there to be observed, i t works, and i t seems to have
received fin a n c ia l support from federal and state agencies since the
early 1970s.

I t is f i t t i n g th a t c it iz e n p a rtic ip a tio n should be

regarded as a means o f reducing societal tension and should auto­
m atically be included as part of the American democratic process.
In contrast to the benefits o f c it iz e n p a rtic ip a tio n as an instrument
fo r decision making and goal attainment is the argument th at c itiz e n

30

p a rtic ip a tio n is best viewed so lely as a means of establishing policy
fo r organizational improvement.
A fte r more than ten years of study, Benson (1971) described
the processes inherent in p a rtic ip a tiv e stru ctu re .

But i t was Klings-

born (1973) who revealed the variables th at a f fe c t the success of
p a rtic ip a tiv e organizations.

P fe ffe r and Salancik (1978) made impor­

tant contributions to the f i e l d by id e n tify in g and la b e llin g internal
c o n flic ts inherent in p a rtic ip a tiv e processes.

The notion of design­

ing organizations around p a rtic ip a tiv e groups was introduced in the
mid-1970s and fostered the ensuing trend, at le a s t in the United
States, toward group dynamics and the study of human re la tio n s .
L e a v itt (1974) stressed the idea th at groups are becoming
more relevant fo r organizations as well as fo r cu ltu ral reasons.

He

said th a t most large organizations are collections of both formal and
informal groups in te ra c tin g with one another, which is a natural
phenomenon o f organizations.

L e a v itt appraised groups as being par­

t i c u l a r l y useful as coordinated and integrated mechanisms fo r dealing
with complex tasks th a t require input of many kinds of specialized
knowledge.

He fu rth e r found th a t organizational decisions resulting

from the in te rp la y o f forces among groups are not a c h a ra c te ris tic
of only large organizations but also o f small, loosely integrated
organizations in which fa ce -to -fa c e a c t iv i t y is an important d is c i­
plinary to o l.

31

Formality in School Organizational Management
and Educational Planning
In terp retin g the need fo r formal structure, r a t i o n a l i t y , and
d is c ip lin e essential fo r a successful organization is not simple.
For the purpose of this in v e s tig a tio n , the researcher examined w r i t ­
ings about the elements th a t compose a successful educational o rg a n i­
zation as well as l it e r a t u r e pertaining to the use of formal management
systems to develop programs in schools.

Surfacing throughout th a t

review were references to and descriptions of systems approaches to
decision making in school organizations.
Godder(1976) discussed the use o f formal management systems
to assist decision making in schools because, in his vie w , using such
systems is the only way to discover the real issues and to decide
what to do about them.

P h illip s and Tucker (1976) defined needs

assessment as the difference between what is and what should be and
prescribed long-range educational planning as the means o f meeting the
needs of school organizations. Alexander (1975) approached educational
planning by examining the social demands on the school o r g a n iz a tio n ,
in terp retin g those demands into objectives that could be met by
forecasting manpower needs, and measuring the benefits o f educational
planning by attempting to assess expenditures.
Coelho (1975) presented a set o f techniques fo r developing
and implementing a systems-management e f f o r t in a sm all, conservative
New England school d i s t r i c t as an adoptable model focusing on s e l f assessment and organizational diagnosis.

Third-party consultants

became the means by which small school d i s t r ic t s developed th e ir

32

management s k i l l s and solved t h e ir problems system atically.

Coelho's

basic assumption was th at small systems function best under a central
management team.

I t has been found th a t variations in s c h o o l-d is tric t

size a ffe c t the success o f the team approach.

According to a study

conducted by the Ohio Association of Elementary School Principals
(1971), s c h o o l-d is tric t needs depend d ir e c tly on d i s t r i c t s iz e , and
the best decisions are made by individuals and groups as close to the
point of implementation as possible.
Unless an organization recognizes the need to coordinate the
e ffo rts of it s key people to re a liz e common objectives, i t is subject
to e ith e r misdirection and dissipated energy or to minimal e f f e c t iv e ­
ness, at best.

Ciampa (1975) prepared a systems overview fo r school

administrators supporting th is essential premise.

His primary e f f o r t

was directed at presenting evidence th a t systems approaches were in
practice 2,000 years ago when P h ilip of Macedonia asked what objec­
tives he needed to accomplish and determined the procedures he had to
follow with the resources av aila b le to him.
Planners and Planning in Educational Settings
The ris e of the local educational planner was preceded by
th at of the regional educational planner, who functioned prim arily
through state departments of education.

As regional planning became

the law of the land and was proven e ffe c tiv e ,^ i t also provided
directio n fo r educational-organizational management.
^Some of the pertinent le g is la tio n is as follows: Michigan
Public Act 281 of 1945, as amended P.A. 194 of 1952; as amended P.A.
87 of 1967; as amended P.A. 427 of 1976. Federal Housing Act of 1954,
Section 701. A-95 Review required fo r land use— 1966, as amended

33

Writers of urban-planning lit e r a t u r e in the mid-1900s pro­
vided an aggregation of material th at established an essential m u ltip le step framework fo r educational planning.

Each of the steps was a

separate element in systematic planning in educational organizations;
as with the model described in this d is s e rta tio n , a ll components were
e s s e n tia l.
According to Simon (1962), the greater the number o f parts a
system develops, the greater i t s complexity and i t s a b i l i t y to pro­
duce change w ithin i t s e l f to improve goal attainment.

Melcher (1975)

researched in s titu tio n a l structures and processes designed to define
and a tta in systematically established goals.

Among the organizations

th a t generated s c ie n t if ic policy strategies and e ffe c tiv e decision­
making procedures, those incorporating e ffe c tiv e c itiz e n p a rtic ip a ­
tion demonstrated the best mechanisms fo r feedback o f evaluative
information.
Kast and Rosenzweig (1972) found th at organizations are not
spontaneously evolving social systems; they are contrived by man.
As Ackoff (1971) reported, organizations were formed from human com­
ponents and t h e ir structures were based on events rather than physical
components, which could not be separated from the processes.

Lazio

(1972) viewed the human components of organizations as w i l l f u l e le ­
ments in the sense th a t the participants i n i t i a t e d and, in varying
degrees, carried out the organization's a c t i v i t i e s .

1976. Federal O ffice of Management and Budget--Section 204 o f Demon­
s tra tio n C itie s and Metropolitan Development Act of 1966.

34

An Important step in systems planning is assessment o f need.
Models fo r simple, economical methods o f needs assessment are gen­
e r a l l y a blend o f community p a rtic ip a tio n and evaluation (Rookey,
1976).

The l i t e r a t u r e contained instruments and questionnaires th a t

have been used to gather and understand people's perceptions regard­
ing the need fo r change.
Writers o f the 1970s discussed many new approaches to
resolving problems in educational organizations (Hopkins, 1977).

As

Barbulescu (1976) pointed out, the systems approach can be used to
study problems in a v a rie ty o f f i e l d s .

Employing the methods and

techniques o f modern management and allowing f o r the problems s p ecific
to educational organizations, the systems approach can be used to
define the content of an educational system.

In the development o f

general-systems and organizational theory and in the construction of
educational-theory models, numerous concepts have been borrowed from
other d is c ip lin e s ; the social sciences, a g r ic u lt u r e , economics, phar­
macology, and quantum theory have provided more than a minimal in fluence.
Summary
Given severe-enough challenges from it s environment, any organi­
zation w i l l need to adapt to improve it s goal attainment or to regulate
i t s e l f in such a way as to measure success.

A model fo r systematic

planning provides e x p l i c i t , e f f e c t iv e procedures fo r defining the
s ta te of the organization a t a p a r tic u la r time and the probable degree
of success to be a n tic ip a te d .

Organizations th a t can generate a l t e r ­

native policy stra te g ie s and e f fe c tiv e decision-making procedures
in e v ita b ly have good mechanisms fo r feedback o f evalu ative information.

35

I t is evident from the review of l i t e r a t u r e that there is a
need to develop much b e tte r planning models.

Contemporary social

s c ien tists have barely made a dent in th is e f f o r t , and research on
the development of such models is demanded.

As f a r as can be deter­

mined, only minimal study has been undertaken in th is regard.
Figure 1 represents 60 years o f systematic-planning theory
in a topical display of themes from the prominent w rite rs whose most
important contributions were reviewed by the present researcher.

By

examining this fig u re , one may come to understand the v a rie ty of
themes related to systematic planning and grasp the d iv e rs ity and
profusion of lit e r a t u r e published since 1920.

Figure 2 contains the

same thematic representation as Figure 1 but displays the names o f the
w riters o f systematic-planning theory.

36

1980

IN N O V A T IV E
DEVELOPM ENT

1960
IN F L U E N T IA L
IN D IV ID U A L S
BUREAUCRATIC
STRUCTURE

_

■*<3,

1940 _

& r
CYBERNETICS

1930
GENERAL
GROUP
DYNAMICS

O

LU r ;

> 5
u m

SS
S z
n <

<

Z 10
c c iu

UJU

u j J*
-f O

i/> - 4

-i
1920

I - cc
Z P

SYSTEMS

INTERVIEW S

GOAL
SETTING
MODELS
FOR PROCESS

H U M A N ELEMENTS
OF O R G A N IZA TIO N S

Figure 1 . —A thematic representation o f s ix ty years of
systematic planning theory.

37

__

1980 ___

SCHOENHERR
LIK E R T
BENSON
BENNIS

BUCKLEY

1960

ROOKEY

PERROW
ROWAN
BENDIX

ACKOFF

OUCHI

HANNAN

BLAU

1940

LUTZ

WEICK

A LE X A N D E R

R YAN

LINTO N

A LD R IC H

CHURCHMAN

1930

L E A V IT T

CIAMPA

WEBER

1920

W IENER

SIMON

IANNACCONE

BELL

PAISLEY
TUCKER

BUTLER

PARSONS

LEWIN
GODDER

ROGERS
MOG ULUF

PFEFFER

KA TZ

GLASSMAN
MELCHER

FREEMAN

COELHO

THOMPSON
.

HERZBERG

HA LL

MEYER

MCGREGOR

BARBULESCU

MASLOW

.

LANDAU
GIDEONESE

KLINGSBORN

Figure 2 . —Sixty years o f systematic-plarming th e o ris ts .

CHAPTER I I I

DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
The West Bloomfield Model and Process
The West Bloomfield Model hardly had an o f f i c i a l beginning.
I f , to establish h is to ric a l accuracy, one must pinpoint when the
West Bloomfield Public Schools Model fo r a Systems Plan fo r Program
Development made it s debut, i t would have to have been in February
1975.

The f i r s t Monday evening of th at month, an audience of nearly

100 community members listened as the superintendent of schools,
Dr. Jerry J. Herman, presented the schematics of the model to the
board of education.

(The model, in it s e n t ir e t y , may be found in

Appendix A.)
That winter evening was not the f i r s t occasion on which sys­
tematic planning was the main topic o f discussion among groups of
people working or liv in g in the West Bloomfield School D i s t r i c t .
Before publicly introducing his model a t the 1975 board meeting,
Dr. Herman had frequently described the benefits o f systematic plan­
ning to the building and department administrators and trustees o f
the Board of Education.

In the two years between Dr. Herman's

employment with the school d i s t r i c t in January 1973 and the public
presentation in 1975, the management team had become fa m ilia r with
the basic components of a systems approach to planning and how plan­
ning could help a tta in the goals important to a school d i s t r i c t ' s
38

39

c li e n t e le .

Few o f those school administrators and elected board

members understood the s p e c ific concepts o f systematic planning, but
they soon evidenced more than a surface in te r e s t and had many ques­
tions when the schematics o f the planning model were presented.
On th at February
explanation

evening, Dr.

o f the model and answered

Hermanprovided a graphic
many questions asked by s t a f f

members, elected o f f i c i a l s , and c itiz e n s attending the meeting.

The

administrators and trustees attended because they were required to be
a t a l l regular board o f education meetings, but the large number of
c itiz e n s were there because o f a d v e rtis in g , personal contacts, and
in v ita tio n s sent to parents and community businessmen who were
d ir e c t ly involved in school a c t i v i t i e s .
The
strates how

story o f the model's development and implementation demon­
important i t was fo r many peopleto be involved in the

commitment to adopt the process at the e a r l i e s t possible stage.

That

commitment, in i t s e l f , was what made th is planning model unique and
was a primary reason why the w r it e r decided to give th is evalu ative
description.

A fte r reading th is d e s c rip tio n , one should be able to

understand how the process worked and, a f t e r examining the model's
components, to determine whether the model provides the guidance
necessary f o r implementation in any school d i s t r i c t .

Formal commit­

ment to such an endeavor must fo llow careful evaluation o f the general
concepts o f systematic planning as well as c r i t i c a l analysis o f the
model's components.

As the West Bloomfield Board o f Education did

on th a t February evening in 1975, any other board o f education can
form ally commit i t s e l f to systematic planning.

T h e re a fte r, people

40

adopting th at planning process can duplicate or deviate from the
seven phases of the model described here.
Neither a graphic design nor a few paragraphs are s u ffic ie n t
to explain how this commitment came about, fo r the process was much
more elaborate than can be described in a few sentences.

To under­

stand the success of the planning e f f o r t , the d e ta ils o f Phase I ,
the Overview Planning, must be examined.

In th a t phase, the mission

and goals from which a ll objectives were derived were established fo r
the school d i s t r i c t .

E sse n tially , the in vestigator herein describes

the foundation o f a modified management-by-objectives system.
Commitment and Time Lines
Soon a f t e r the commitment to adopt the model was formalized,
Superintendent Herman announced a va rie ty of tasks to be completed by
June 30, 1975, which would establish the t o p -p r io r ity educational
goals fo r the coming years.

The various publics within the school

organization and the community used the Phi Delta Kappa goal-building
program.^

The superintendent appointed a project manager, whom he

directed to (1) select a s t r a t i f i e d random sample of residents to
rank the 18 educational goals, (2) design a computer-processed survey
instrument to conduct the ranking a c t iv i t y by m a il, and (3) tr a in
other administrators to conduct the Phi Delta Kappa program.
In addition to the sample o f residents, six other groups
participated in the goal-building program.

They were (1) a random

H he Phi Delta Kappa Educational Foundation granted permission
to adapt the instruments displayed in Appendix P. From Phi Delta
Kappa Community Goal Building Exercises and Development Workshop, 1974.

41

sample of senior-high-school students; (2) the e n tir e teaching
s t a f f ; (3) a random sample of the nonteaching s t a f f ; (4) a l l id e n t i­
fia b le PTA, PTO, Fan Club, Band Boosters, and special-education
parent groups; (5) the to ta l administrative s t a f f ; and (6) the board
of education.
None of those who p a rticip ated in the Phi Delta Kappa exer­
cise were included in more than one group.

When the results from the

s ix groups were compiled, the report made to the board did not com­
bine th e ir ranked l i s t s .

In other words, six d iffe r e n t l i s t s of

ranked educational goals were presented.

From these l i s t s , the board
i
created the one l i s t th a t was l a t e r adopted as o f f i c i a l po licy.
While the goals were being ranked, 18 needs-validation
committees were working on the Needs Assessment and Status Studies
components of Phase I .

The committees were as follows:

Six building committees
One personnel committee
One each in
Administration
Curriculum
A th letics
Career and Vocational Education
Community Education
Budget and Finance
Transportation
Food Services
Special Education
Maintenance o f F a c ilit ie s
Public Relations

^West Bloomfield School D is t r ic t Policy No. 6000, adopted
September 22, 1975.

42

Almost 260 members of the West Bloomfield educational community served
on these committees fo r three months.

At the end o f this time, they

presented a 200-page report of needs to the board of education.
C oincidentally, 18 administrators were employed in the d i s t r i c t at
th at time; thus each p r in c ip a l, assistant p r in c ip a l, d ire c to r, and
coordinator was appointed as an administrative lia is o n to one of the
18 committees.

The administrator did not necessarily chair the

committee but was charged with providing information, c le ric a l and
s e creta ria l service, and guidance to th a t committee.

Administrators

also assisted in presenting the l i s t o f needs drawn up by the commit­
tee to the board by June 30, 1975.

Later, 36 residents (two from each

o f the 18 committees) were elected to rank order the needs on a
d is tric tw id e basis.

The 36-member "committee-of-the-whole" performed

this task during the summer of 1975 and presented these 248 needs to
i
the board of education on November 17, 1975.
The w r ite r must r e ite r a te some of the a c t iv i t ie s f a llin g
under the Needs Assessment and Status Studies components in more
d e ta il fo r the reader's c la r i f i c a t i o n .

A major a c t iv i t y of the
2
school d i s t r i c t is an a ttitu d e sampling called ASK,
Beginning in

These needs are lis t e d in the minutes of the regular meeting
of the board o f education, November 17, 1975.
^The A ttitu d e Sampling Kit (ASK) is a question bank of 2,000
items designed to s o l i c i t opinions about education in a p a rtic u la r
community. Responses from a sample of voters, parents, students,
and s t a f f are gathered by telephone interviewers and recorded on
forms th a t may be processed fo r computerized analysis. Copyrighted
by Oakland Intermediate School D i s t r i c t , Pontiac, Michigan, in 1968,
the questionnaire was f i e l d tested in C a lifo rn ia during a fiv e -y e a r
period a f t e r 1963.

43

1974, ASK has been conducted annually in West Bloomfield and other
Oakland County d i s t r ic t s in te re s te d in gathering information about
c itiz e n s ' a ttitu d e s .

Reports consisting of summaries and analyses of

the information are frequently made to the board of education.
Status studies used by various committees and the board
comprised a ll of the r e tr ie v a b le reports and pieces of information
gathered over several preceding years and produced whenever a compila­
tio n o f information was needed.

Many reports were updated from those

produced sometime in the past, f i l e d f o r fu ture reference, and l e f t
unchanged as time elapsed.

Such reports provided valuable informa­

tio n during summer 1975 while th e committee-of-the-whole rank ordered
the d i s t r i c t ' s needs.
Frequently, studies were comparisons of data compiled about
West Bloomfield and other school d i s t r i c t s .

This method often gave

the persons concerned a basis f o r recommending a change in a current
condition.

Consequently, a high p r i o r i t y was assigned to such a need,

the intention being to bring about a change in a short time.
During the 1976-77 school y e a r, there was a hiatus in program
development.

Because of unpredictable revenues; in fla tio n a ry costs

fo r services, equipment, and supplies; and unsettled employee master
contracts, the board o f education reduced a c t iv i t ie s related to the
planning model.

That year, as in the preceding academic year, the

administration attempted to meet those needs ranked high by the
validation committee i f no cost or a low cost was associated with
such action.

44

In the 1975-76 and 1976-77 school years, the board adopted
goals ranked in the h ig h e s t-p rio rity positions in the description of
need.

For instance, in spring 1976, the voters passed a bond issue

a f te r an energetic campaign to remodel Roosevelt Elementary School
and to improve other buildings.

Other h ig h -p r io r ity needs, including

the number-one item, were not met but were earmarked as those that
required future bonding.
Financial Resources From an External Source
During summer 1977, the d i s t r i c t received notice th at a
financial award would be made from Elementary and Secondary Educa­
tion Act, T i t l e IV-C funds.

The d i s t r i c t successfully competed in the

proposal-writing process established by the Michigan Department of
Education and was granted $40,000 to establish an o ffic e of planning
and evaluation and to te st a planning model.

With th is funding, the

West Bloomfield Schools were able to reac tiva te the systems-planning
process and, in f a l l 1977, reactivated the components of the model,
beginning with Phase I I

(the Awareness Phase).

A description o f the three components o f Phase I I supports a
major contention of proponents o f the model—th at decisions made by
groups of people are b e tte r than those made by in d ivid u a ls.

The

Awareness Phase was designed to bring the dynamics o f individuals
in teracting with others in a group setting to a conscious state a t
which those dynamics would help group members make e f f i c i e n t and
Hhe number-one item, the construction of another elementary
school, has not ye t been accomplished because of declining e n r o ll­
ments in the elementary schools.

45

e ffe c tiv e decisions.

Workshops in group dynamics were important in

fostering the group-decision-making process.

Teachers, aides, and

administrators were trained in an attempt to cement group-leadership
s k i l l s in as many key individuals as possible.

Parents, other c i t i ­

zens, and paraprofessional and support s ta ffs were included as an
important part of the group-dynamics workshops.
A project d irec to r and a part-tim e secretary were employed
to coordinate this and subsequent phases of the model.

The superin­

tendent and the project d irec to r selected a group-dynamics consultant.
He had had many years o f experience directing organizational develop­
ment and research in group dynamics with General Motors Corporation
and other organizations, including some composed of c itiz e n volun­
teers .
The f i r s t public a c t iv it ie s began in October 1977.

Board

members and administrators submitted the names of potential p a r t i c i ­
pants; these people were chosen because of t h e ir d ire c t involvement
with the schools, e ith e r as parents or residents.

I t was assumed

th a t these people, lik e employees who volunteered to p a rtic ip a te ,
had a t least a minimal knowledge of the schools' operations and a
generally supportive a ttitu d e concerning the school organization.
A l e t t e r explaining the project and in v itin g potential participants
to an orien tation meeting was sent to 110 people.

(See Appendix B.)

Sixty participants attended the o rien tation meeting, which was held
on Saturday, October 22, 1977.
The meeting began with a b r ie f welcome and remarks by the
president of the board of education.

This contribution by the ch ief

46

elected o f f i c i a l was essential to the program's success because i t
reassured the participants they were involving themselves in an
a c t iv i t y about which, a t that time, they might have f e l t somewhat
confused.

Other board members added t h e ir support to the endeavor

and assured participants th at t h e ir e ffo r ts would produce information
of value to the board o f education.
The agenda fo r the remainder of the afternoon is included in
Appendix C.

The project d irec to r explained the purpose o f the day's

a c t iv i t ie s and the objectives of the project several times during the
workshop and answered questions whenever they arose.
conducted three major a c t iv i t ie s during the day.

The consultant

Each deserves some

comment here because these a c t iv i t ie s were important in developing
the planning process.
Participants were assigned to seven subgroups in which they
were to discuss current situations and conditions in the school d is ­
t r i c t and to itemize the negative and positive characteristics they
could state as problems requiring solutions.

One-on-one interviews

followed, in which concerns th at might be unlike those generated in
the subgroups were gathered.

A spokesperson from each subgroup was

selected to report to the to ta l group.

During th a t "sharing" time,

the common concerns were noted on a large chalkboard and grouped into
four major categories, labeled communications, adm inistration, cur­
riculum, and s t a f f .

The project d ire c to r attempted to l i s t a ll s ta te ­

ments made by the seven spokespersons in the four categories, but
this proved to be an impossible task w ithin the a v aila b le time.
was decided th a t a l l participants would receive a l i s t o f the

It

47

statements a f t e r the workshop and be able to give some in dication of
t h e ir perception concerning the r e la t iv e importance o f each item.
Appendix D shows how those responses were co llected.
In the next part o f the o rien tatio n meeting, the consultant
conducted an individual versus group decision-making exercise.

Many

such exercises can be found in current publications developed for
community involvement (Matthews et a l . , 1978) and public relations
fo r schools ( P f e i f f e r & Jones, 1977).

At the end o f the workshop,

participants added t h e ir names to a l i s t o f people interested in
working on a task force to investigate one o f the four problem areas.
The group selected a date fo r the next workshop, and the meeting
was adjourned fo r the day.
Appendix E shows the ranking of responses to the "State of
the D is t r ic t" perceptions e li c it e d in October.

The subgroup spokes­

persons and the project d irec to r determined th a t a ll participants
should be involved in determining which problems were more important
than others.

Participants ranked the problem statements and returned

t h e ir rankings by m ail.

P ro je c t-o ffic e personnel compiled the r e s u lts ,

which were reported to the participants a t a December 1977 groupdynamics workshop.
A Demonstration o f Enthusiasm fo r Planning
The mood of the second workshop, conducted in December 1977,
was noticeably d iffe r e n t from th a t o f the f i r s t .

A d if f e r e n t envi­

ronment was selected in te n tio n a lly fo r the meeting.

Instead of the

auditorium /lecture h a ll type o f se ttin g used the f i r s t tim e, th is

48

gathering was scheduled in a b rig h tly l i t , more informal c a fe t e r ia /
social hall in another school building.

An early-morning s t a r t added

to a high level of a n tic ip a tio n fo r making progress on the job to be
done.
By and la rg e , the c itiz e n participants were the same 60 who
had attended the October o rie n ta tio n meeting.

Some new faces also

appeared, e ith e r adding to the o rig in al group or replacing individuals
who had contacted the project d ire c to r and requested exclusion from
fu rth e r a c t i v i t y .

An increased number of teachers and administrators

also attended.
An e f f o r t to id e n tify resource people who would be available
1
to the sp ecific task groups had been successful.
That i s , the
project d irec to r had persuaded several teachers and administrators
to act as experts in sp ecific areas related to the general topics of
concern expressed at the October meeting and in the ranking exercise
completed a f t e r the meeting.

At the end o f the second workshop,

these resource persons served an important purpose and proved to be
useful as the respective groups pursued t h e ir tasks.
Appendix F contains the agenda fo r the second workshop, at
which the group-decision-making process gained momentum.

With

encouragement from the project d ire c to r , the resource people, and
the administrators, participants reviewed the work completed thus f a r
and got to know each other b e tte r through several group-dynamics
^Administrators and residents served as resource people in
s p ecific areas o f expertise, e . g . , curriculum, business and finance,
health services, and construction trades.

49

exercises.

A modest but tasty luncheon, prepared by several school-

bus d riv e rs , added to the enjoyment of the occasion and enhanced the
s o c ia liza tio n process.

As time went on, i t became evident th a t sharing

food and refreshments was an important element in the group process.
Restoring energy was c r i t i c a l at ce rtain times, but more important
was the incentive added by so c ia liz in g during meals.

When people

were working hard and evidencing some anxiety about t h e ir tasks, i t
was helpful to release tensions a t refreshment time.
A fte r lunch, participants heard a lecture on how groups can
reach consensus and make decisions, and then they practiced what they
had learned.

This led to reformulation of the four groups associated

with the four major areas of concern th at had been id e n t ifie d seven
weeks before.

As each group met, participants were given some sug­

gestions on how to set p r io r it ie s when turning to the task ahead;
how to define sp ecific goals and break them down into manageable,
measurable objectives; and how to devote themselves to a c le a r ly
stated task.

Each group elected a chairperson, who selected in d i­

viduals to assist in group leadership.
As the day progressed, the resource people shared ideas about
where to obtain information; the consultant and the project d irec to r
generally helped the groups approach t h e ir goals.

Appendix G d is ­

plays a group-decision-making exercise the project d ire c to r designed
fo r each of the four groups.

A fte r doing the exercise, individual

groups decided on a time fo r th e ir next meeting and shared with the
to ta l group the project they had undertaken, the way they had decided

50

to approach i t , and needs they perceived fo r successful completion.
The workshop adjourned following an evaluation o f the day's a c t i v i t i e s .
An in te re s tin g phenomenon occurred when the curriculum and
s t a f f groups decided to combine t h e ir memberships, t h e ir charges, and
t h e ir tasks.

This was re fle c te d in a l e t t e r sent to a l l p a rtic ip a n ts ,

summarizing the work accomplished through the f i r s t part o f the
school year and giving a pre-holiday reminder intended to continue the
momentum into the new year.

(See Appendix H.)

Beginning in January, the three task groups met regu larly and
formulated recommendations fo r re c tify in g the problems id e n tifie d
e a rlie r.

These recommendations usually were brought to the project

d ire c to r's notice f i r s t because the d irec to r and the task-group
chairpersons had established th is procedure.

Some recommendations

were submitted to the superintendent fo r his reaction , but generally
the task groups retained t h e ir proposals fo r incorporation into a
fin a l report.
V is its and Record Keeping
During t h e ir in vestigation s, task-group members v is ite d other
schools and d is t r ic t s to observe how they had solved s p ecific prob­
lems.

Other members v is ite d l i b r a r i e s , public and p rivate agencies,

corporation s it e s , and research centers or attended a conference or
workshop in an attempt to gain insight into various ways of meeting
d i s t r i c t needs.

In any case, the participants reported on these v is its

to t h e ir group, the project d ire c to r , and t h e ir colleagues and shared
what they had learned th at might help improve ongoing programs or

51

develop new ones.

Group members often were accompanied on these

v is its by a fr ie n d , a spouse, or a colleague who was not d ire c tly
involved in the project.

Appendix I contains a form designed to

help participants report and record information gathered on a v i s i ­
ta tio n .
Another part o f the Phase I I a c t i v i t y was a review of l i t e r a ­
ture containing descriptions o f outstanding programs in Michigan and
elsewhere.

This type o f investigation provided a means by which a

p a rticip an t could contribute a great deal but did not need to spend
time tra v e lin g .

Those who preferred to review printed materials

prepared reports s im ila r to those done by people who had made v i s i ­
ta tion s.

No standardized format was recommended fo r these reports.

The aforementioned types of a c t iv i t ie s took place fo r about eight
weeks.
Planning fo r the Future
By March, Phase I I I of the planning model was scheduled to
begin.

This called fo r the appointment of a 13-member committee

composed of s t a f f , parents, students, board members, and administra­
tors to develop a fiv e -y e a r plan to be adopted by the board of education before the beginning of the 1978-79 school year.

The fiv e -y e a r -

plan committee was appointed and became known as a "blue-ribbon panel"
in acknowledgment of t h e ir important task.

The project d ire c to r

c a re fu lly selected the 13 committee members, and the superintendent
^The dates shown in Appendix A do not r e f le c t the two-year
period when project a c t iv i t ie s were cu rta ile d because o f in s u ffic ie n t
fin an cial support.

52

appointed them to carry out t h e ir tasks, which are detailed in
Appendix J.

In addition to developing a fiv e -y e a r plan, the commit­

tee was to conduct a p u b lic -re la tio n s program to inform residents,
school s t a f f , and students about the purpose o f the planning e f f o r t
and also to gain input into and support fo r the plan before it s
o f f i c i a l adoption.

I f any c r itic is m is to be levied concerning the

weakest lin k in the chain of events, i t must be here:

The citizen s

on the committee declared themselves incapable of undertaking a
p u b lic -relatio n s program.

By m id -A p ril, the committee was ready to

make recommendations and to share ideas with the public.

Even though

some members o f the group expressed a need fo r more time, t h e ir energy
and enthusiasm carried the group well ahead of schedule to complete
its task.
One might speculate th at committee members resisted the publicrelations e f f o r t because they lacked confidence, but probably they
were convinced th at public relations is successfully handled only by
professionals.

The th reat of f a ilu r e loomed when the committee mem­

bers assessed t h e i r own strengths in p u b lic -relatio n s techniques,
and they did not want to jeopardize the favorable public sentiment
th at had been gained up to th a t point.

The committee did not formally

refuse to conduct a p u b lic -relatio n s program, but members were
obviously reluctan t to discuss and commit themselves to such a program.
Nevertheless, the corronittee met r e g u la rly , chose co-chairpersons, and
undertook the assigned task to propose a plan fo r change.
committee met only three times.

The e n tire

Most o f the work was completed by

53

individuals who worked in small teams and then sought d irec tio n from
the to ta l group at committee meetings.
Appendix K contains minutes o f la te March and e a rly April 1978
meetings, when the committee was in the process o f working out and
ranking the various needs assessed by the task groups.

The commit­

tee decided th a t various categories of needs should be formed to
provide a c le a rly defined l i s t and to add perspective to the kinds of
needs that existed.

Without ranking the 1975 needs l i s t , and by

eliminating needs that had been met since th at time, the 1978 needs
l i s t was compiled.
The committee decided to introduce the te n ta tiv e fiv e -y e a r
plan a t a public meeting before presenting i t to the board o f educa­
tio n fo r adoption.

The meeting was scheduled fo r April and was

announced to the e n tir e community.

Appendix L shows the kinds of

methods used to encourage community members to attend the meeting.
Radio and newspaper advertising was p r o l i f i c , and committee and
task-force members conducted a telephone campaign to generate in te re s t
and to promote attendance.

This e s s e n tia lly was the extent of the

p u b lic -relatio n s program.

The campaign also provided an opportunity

fo r everyone to express an opinion or to comment on the fiv e -y e a r plan
before the committee presented i t to the board.
Confirmation o f a Long-Range Plan
At the public meeting in A p r il, an audience of approximately
30 residents joined the c itiz e n s , s t a f f , and students who had worked
on developing the fiv e -y e a r plan.

(See Appendix M fo r the agenda

54

of that meeting.)
discussion.

The atmosphere was lik e th a t o f a round-table

There was a degree o f fo rm a lity , ye t there was enough

questioning and discussion to provide a congenial give-and-take
dialogue.

At the close o f the meeting, this w r it e r re ite ra te d the

appreciation expressed by the audience to the p a rticip ants fo r a job
well done.

Several board members and administrators acknowledged the

many hours spent by the p a rtic ip a n ts , who had completed what appeared
to be a very worthwhile undertaking.
Four days l a t e r , representatives and chairpersons from the
committee attended a regular board of education meeting and presented
the Five-Year Long-Range Planning Report.

(See Appendix N.)

The board

accepted the report with few questions, probably because most members
f e l t well informed a f t e r having attended several ta sk-fo rce or com­
mittee meetings as well as the public meeting.

The board asked the

administrative team to determine the cost o f items in the report that
did not already have a p ric e .

Further, the board directed the adminis­

tr a t iv e council to propose p i lo t programs th a t might be subsidized by
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, T i t l e IV-C funds and to imple­
ment them.

This the council did a t i t s May 3 meeting.

The project

continued u n til May 10, when the council activated the fin a l phases
of the planning model.
Appendix 0 shows how p i l o t programs were selected.

In the

in te ra c tio n o f the p rin c ip a ls , d ire c to rs , and superintendents, there
was dynamic competition among those favoring and those opposing a
p a rtic u la r p i l o t program.

The programs selected in e v ita b ly were the

ones best described, thought out, and developed and, o f course, best

55

presented by individuals in the group.

As the guidelines o f Phase IV

o f the systems plan were applied to selected programs, i t became less
necessary to follow precisely the format of the model.

However, th is

part o f the model functioned as intended when the p i lo t programs
commenced.
Final Phases of the Systems Plan
Phase IV is
problem is
The steps
Programs

a simple o u tlin e of steps to be followed when a

id e n tifie d and a plan fo r solving th at problem is

sought.

are followed in an e f f o r t to develop any program area.
are specific or very general in nature and of a short term

or encompassing several years.
which a program is

The need determines the format under

developed.^

( I f a l l components of the Phase IV

outlin e are used, the p i lo t e f f o r t w ill be b etter designed than i f no
plan were followed a t a l l . )
Phase V provides a sim p lified approach to evaluation o f pro­
grams, regardless of whether they
established.
ponents.

are in a p i l o t stage or are already

There is no mystery about the four basic system com­

Delivery denotes the manner in which a program is

implemented—what is happening.

Data r e tr ie v a l is the process by

which information about the program is gathered, and evaluation states
how th a t information is used.

Reporting of results is an important

component, fo r observers and participants a lik e may draw conclusions
about success and f a i l u r e from these re s u lts .

Conclusions often are

V h e items in the Phase IV o u tlin e do not include a l l possible
tests but provide a comprehensive, i f not complete, l i s t .

56

evidenced th at are based, not on results but rath er on the manner in
which results are reported.
Phase VI is a detailed o u tlin e of the way a decision regard­
ing program success can be made.

I t stresses not only the importance

of monitoring data c o lle c tio n , but also the careful analysis o f those
data to evaluate the results and draw meaningful conclusions.

The

decision then is based on the success or f a ilu r e of a p i l o t program
and determines whether a program w i l l be expanded, re p lic a te d , modi­
f ie d , or disbanded.

This phase of the model incorporates the essen­

t i a l element of a ll systems planning— the a b i l i t y to return to a
previous phase when a need is s t i l l apparent or when a solution is not
deemed successful and another is sought.
As in Phases IV , V, and IV of the model, Phase V II is an
ongoing sequence o f a c t iv i t ie s tie d d ir e c tly to implementing new
programs th a t have proven themselves worthy of continuation.

Phase

V II outlines f iv e areas in which decisions must be made about success­
f u l l y piloted programs.

The allo ca tio n of fin an cial and human

resources is probably the area in which most decisions are made th at
determine whether a program w i l l be developed a t a l l .

Simply put, i f

resources are not e a s ily id e n t if ie d , programs are dropped even i f
they otherwise have proven successful.
Phase V II incorporates a description of the delivery system
by which a piloted program w i l l be implemented, including the s t a f f ­
ing pattern , f a c i l i t y requirements, in struction al or other processes,
and supply requirements.

A th ird component contains a description of

the s t a f f and p a rtic ip a n t tra in in g process.

Often, the p i l o t s t a f f

57

learns a great deal about tra in in g needs as the program becomes
operative.

Inservice tra in in g is equally important fo r new s t a f f ,

in the case o f expansion or replacement of experienced personnel.
Public relations is important when a new program is adopted.
When a decision is made to develop a successfully piloted program, a
plan must be created to disseminate information about that program.
The ease and s k i l l with which this is done are d ir e c tly related to
how much planning has been done to establish positive attitudes among
the various publics who are li k e l y to c r i t i c i z e any e f f o r t to e ffe c t
change.
Upon determining a time sequence fo r implementation, a l l of
the ingredients fo r program development have been mixed in to the
planning formula.

The West Bloomfield Systems Plan fo r Program

Development includes a ll o f the ingredients fo r the seven phases of
the model.

In th is chapter, in which the w r ite r described the syste­

matic process and the model o u tlin e , more questions may have been
raised than answers presented.

As with any model, the contents serve

only as a guide fo r the user.
For the early phases of the model, i t was possible to describe
single events th a t complied with the guidelines and illu s t r a t e d how
the model works.

In the l a t e r phases, especially the implementation

of programs, no single example followed a l l the guidelines o f the
model.

At th is point, i t might be helpful to review a currently

operating program th a t was developed at West Bloomfield using the
Systems Plan process.

58

An Example o f the Model's Results
In the 1975 needs-validation process, p r io r it y item 37 was
to develop a K-12 curriculum fo r g ifte d children .

In 1977, those

involved in reviewing and studying the o rig in al 248 needs recognized
the need fo r a program fo r g ifte d chidlren.

The Long-Range Planning

Task Force on Curriculum and S ta f f supported the need fo r such a
program and knew of a te n ta tiv e d i s t r i c t plan fo r a magnet school fo r
academically accelerated elementary-school students.

In it s re p o rt,

the Task Force warned against c u rta ilin g currently operating schoold i s t r i c t programs and reducing others.

I t also stated th a t teacher

s h ifts resu ltin g in increased loads fo r teachers in the neighborhood
elementary schools or any curtailment o f f a c i l i t i e s or equipment
elsewhere to make the new program operational would not be desirable
or acceptable.
In October 1977, when the report was prepared, an advisory
committee was already designing the Magnet Program fo r g ifte d stu­
dents.

The d i s t r i c t earmarked $21,000 fo r the development o f a p i lo t

program, which was completed by June 1978.

For the 1978-79 school

year, the board allocated $41,250 to implement the magnet school
program.

The question of how this decision-making process conformed

to the model's guidelines can be answered by reviewing the events
th at transpired and acknowledging th at the program was developed to
meet more than one need and to solve more than one problem.
The t o p -p r io r ity need, validated in the o rig in al 1975 study,
was to build a new elementary school or to r e lie v e overcrowding at
Green School by reducing the student population by 250.

The second,

59

t h ir d , and f i f t h p r io r it y items concerned renovating and remodeling
Roosevelt Elementary School, a deteriorating building constructed in
1925 and the oldest s t i l l in use in the d i s t r i c t .

A professional

consultant conducted a study and proposed a design fo r extensive
renovation.

With th is in mind, the board o f education campaigned fo r

a $1 m illio n bond issue, which was passed in spring 1976.
I t soon became apparent th a t the renovated building was an
ideal settin g fo r an expanded program.
to accommodate new programs.

Old f a c i l i t i e s could be used

For the d i s t r i c t ' s Five-Year Plan fo r

Media Program Development arose a suggestion fo r a new lib r a r y and
media center.

The assessment committee expressed a need to reduce

the population at one school and to establish a program fo r g ifte d
students.

The common thread th a t tie d these needs together was the

search fo r solutions, which occurred in the long-range planning
process.

I f the needs had not been id e n t if ie d , ranked, and discussed

in the early phases o f the process as dictated in the model, a mesh­
ing of solutions might not have occurred.
Eventually, solutions were found fo r three problem areas:
(1) the overcrowding s itu a tio n , (2) the renovation of a b u ild in g ,
and (3) services fo r g ifte d students.

The committee designing the

program fo r g ifte d students requested funds from the remaining
Elementary and Secondary Education A ct, T i t l e IV-C monies to use
during the summer o f 1978 fo r s t a f f professional-development a c t i v i ­
t ie s .

When the board o f education decided on June 1, 1978, to imple­

ment the Magnet Program during the 1978-79 school y e a r, the additional
monies, which amounted to $6,000, provided valuable s t a f f tr a in in g .

60

Observing the events of the 1977-78 school year in West
Bloomfield, one can see the la s t four phases of the systems plan in
operation.

The casual observer might only think th a t the Magnet

School Program served g ifte d students, whereas, in f a c t , i t also
reduced the student population in the f iv e elementary schools and put
to best use the newly constructed f a c i l i t i e s in an aging building.
The more in s ig h tfu l observer would see th at the i n i t i a l implementa­
tion of the programs was closely monitored, and, although the programs
appeared to meet the assessed needs, they would be evaluated according
to the systems-plan guidelines and reworked fo r future improvement.
I t conclusion, i t must be noted th a t this program-development
process was not without c r is i s .

But f a r overshadowing these crises

were the p o s itiv e , productive a c t iv i t ie s th a t took place as a resu lt
o f the d irec tio n provided by the systems plan.

CHAPTER IV

BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON RESPONDENTS WHO
PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY
Superintendent Interviews
To look a t any sample o f d is t r ic t s selected by s iz e , popula­
tio n , or other c r i t e r i a is to look at as many d if f e r e n t modes of
operation and as many d iffe r e n t decision-making processes as there are
individuals who f i l l

the position o f chief executive fo r the various

d i s t r i c t s — the superintendent.

A "systems" approach, in diverse

forms and conditions, is present in most superintendents' management
techniques.

With varying precision, some degree of systematic plan­

ning takes place in the regular operation o f a ll school d i s t r ic t s .
I t is the superintendent who determines ju s t how systematic the
planning i s .

Those who have more than a general knowledge o f the

concept w i l l , as the world becomes more complex and society makes
more demands on decision makers, find themselves with an advantage
in the professional f i e l d of educational leadership.

The era of

cybernetics^ and automation w i l l not allow p u b lic -s c h o o l-d is tric t
executives to make decisions or develop programs without any planning.
^Wiener and Rosenbleuth (1945) called the e n tir e f i e l d of
control and communication in a system "cybernetics" from the Greek
word fo r "steersman." The term dates back no e a r l i e r than 1945 and
refers to mathematical logic applied by planners capable of using
computer technology to search fo r a lte rn a tiv e solutions to problems.

61

62

With th is in mind, two of the questions posed in th is evalua­
t iv e description were as follows:

Can a model fo r systems planning

work fo r a v a rie ty of school d i s t r i c t s , and what are the questions
th at must be answered before rep lic a tio n o f such models takes place?
These are questions of s a l a b i l i t y .

Simply stated, w ill s c h o o l-d is tric t

superintendents, t h e ir respective policy-making boards, and t h e ir
subordinate administrators adopt a systematic approach to program
planning and development?

To answer this and other related questions,

the investigator interviewed school superintendents to determine th e ir
a ttitu d es toward long-range systematic planning fo r program develop­
ment and to id e n tify sp ecific questions they might ask before deciding
whether to adopt the model described here.

The questions they

asked formed the basis fo r an a ttitu d e survey presented to additional
superintendents, who were asked to respond to a series of questions
th at were mailed to them.

Six superintendents were in the f i r s t

group, who were interviewed personally; the second group numbered 54.
The f i r s t group of participants was selected because (1) they
were c h ie f executives in school d is t r ic t s w ithin 50 miles o f the
w r it e r 's home, and therefore personal contact was convenient; and
(2) they represented a va rie ty of school d i s t r i c t s .

Two were super­

intendents o f intermediate school d i s t r i c t s , one serving seven con­
s titu e n t public-school d is t r ic t s and the o th er, 13.

The three other

superintendents in this group represented public-school d is t r ic t s
with 3,352, 893, and 1,202 kindergarten through tw elfth-grade students.
The interviews were conducted inform ally.

The interview er

explained th a t the purpose of the interview was to generate a series

63

of questions asked by school superintendents i f they were considering
adopting the model fo r program development established in the West
Bloomfield Schools.
The interviewer began each interview with a 20-minute
description of the model and how i t had been conceived, implemented,
and modified in the Vlest Bloomfield D i s t r i c t .

Following that presen­

ta tio n , he answered any questions the superintendent had and c l a r i f i e d
any misunderstandings about the model in p a rtic u la r or systems plan­
ning in general.

The maximum amount o f time th is took was one hour

and ten minutes.
On the following pages is a synopsis o f the questions the
superintendents asked.

Emphasis is placed on questions asked by

several participants and responses to questions suggested by the
interviewer.
Superintendent One, an in term e d ia te-s ch o o l-d is trict executive
in the d i s t r i c t serving seven subordinate d i s t r i c t s , asked:

What

was the significance of the personalities of the key persons involved
in the leadership roles?

He questioned whether the management s ty le

the c h ie f executive followed was as important as his manner of deal­
ing with his c lie n t e le and subordinates.

In terms o f adopting a

facsim ile of the planning model, he contended th at the f e a s i b i l i t y of
such an endeavor depended not so much on the process i t s e l f but on
the personality t r a i t s of the executive, the d ire c to r , the consultant,
or other key leaders involved.

He pointed out his b e lie f th at the real

te s t of successful implementation would not be the involvement of vast

64

numbers of c itiz e n participants but whether they believed they had
d ire c t input into the decision-making process.
Philosophically, Superintendent One supported the model's
purpose and saw no real concern fo r the board of education's commit­
ment to such a process.
way to get the job done.

Rather, he saw the process as ju s t one more
He did not feel th a t the number of p a r t i c i ­

pants mattered a great deal but questioned the extensive amount of
time required to manage this process.
questions:

He then raised two fin a l

How much time must be spent acclimating and orienting

people involved in the process?

and Is the c r e d i b i l i t y of the model

d ir e c tly related to the amount of time spent tra in in g people in the
process and,

in tu rn , convincing them of it s worth?

The second superintendent was an in term e d ia te-s ch o o l-d is trict
executive in

a county with 13 local d i s t r ic t s in the service area.

Early in the

interview , th is administrator described himself as

interested in long-range planning and fu rth e r indicated his propen­
s ity fo r f u t u r is t ic forecasting.

He believed th a t a ll executives

should have planning s k i l l s and th at any manageable means to incor­
porate systematic planning in the organization's day-to-day opera­
tions was of primary b e n e fit to the ch ief executive.
He asked sp ecific questions about the West Bloomfield Systems
Plan:

Is the model s t i l l in existence?

a c t iv i t ie s are s t i l l operational?

What component parts of the

Which have been dropped?

are certain components s t i l l active and others not?

Why

A fte r fu rth e r

conversation regarding the components, he asked whether the systems
plan remained on ta rg e t in it s year-by-year schedule--was the schedule

65

adhered to exactly or only approximated?

Additional questions related

to the cost of maintaining such a planning system.

The actual cost in

dollars as well as in man hours was important to Superintendent Two.
Superintendent Two was not concerned about the composition of
the various policy boards of his constituent school d is t r ic t s but
expressed the b e lie f th at d iffe r in g approaches to planning would be
forthcoming and questioned the a d a p ta b ility of the model to various
extremes of a ttitu d e s .

He wondered i f the system would work in a

community in which conservative attitu d es dominated and how th at
would d i f f e r from a community in which a more lib e r a l approach to the
philosophy o f education predominated.
Superintendent Three was a f i r s t - y e a r executive in a rural
school d i s t r i c t with 1,180 K-12 students.

He saw himself and his

community at a real disadvantage in terms of attempting to adopt a
systems-planning e f f o r t lik e the one the West Bloomfield model sug­
gested.

He questioned whether he could even generate the time and

manpower to i n i t i a t e Phase I i f he successfully obtained board-ofeducation commitment.

He f e l t such a commitment was obtainable but

perceived the whole concept o f systems planning as a rath er s o p h is ti­
cated idea and questioned it s " f i t " in a less sophisticated community
such as his own.

With regard to the amount of time required to tr a in

the p a rticip an ts, p a r t ic u la r ly the key adm inistrative personnel, he
questioned whether the necessary resources could be made a v a ila b le .
F in a lly , Superintendent Three questioned the means by which an
acceptance of planning is generated.

He expressed concern about what

he termed the educational level o f his c itiz e n ry and was certain

66

th at the key to successful adoption lay in the hands of the adminis­
t r a t i v e team.
Superintendent Four, who was from a s im ila rly sized school
d i s t r i c t (920 K-12 students), expressed concerns and posed questions
not unlike those o f Superintendent Three.

Superintendent Four's

community was a small-town rather than a rural d i s t r i c t .

He thought

that preliminary board-of-education commitment could e a s ily be
obtained but f e l t th a t the trustees would need in ten sive, ongoing
tra in in g in systematic long-range planning.

He s p e c ific a lly ques­

tioned the p o s s ib ility of allo c a tin g the seemingly endless adminis­
t r a t i v e hours and p a rtic ip a n ts ' time required fo r Phases I and I I of
the model.

He f e l t a research-and-development budget was an illu s io n

in his d i s t r i c t and th a t, without i t , a planning model was incompre­
hensible.

His major concern seemed to focus on dealing with crises

and how the costs of such dealings never l e f t any funds fo r planning
or research in educational practices.
This superintendent, lik e Superintendent Three, considered his
constituents' low educational level and lack o f sophistication a
handicap.

He had experienced c it iz e n naivete about educational inno­

vations and a resultant lack o f input.

Because implementing the model

required the p a rtic ip a tio n o f numerous c it iz e n s , he questioned how
to involve them in the p ro ject.

He summarized his reactions to the

model by statin g th a t community size was the most important fa c to r.
He f e l t th a t involving more people would provide a proportionate
number of participants fo r such an endeavor.

Superintendent Four

also inquired about the p o litic s of the systems-planning a c t i v i t i e s .

67

Because he f e l t most group decisions are made through p o lit ic a l
maneuvers, he thought th is would be a deterrent to the model’s
progress.
Superintendent Five had served his local public-school d is ­
t r i c t fo r eight years.

The d i s t r i c t was suburban, a f f lu e n t , and

considered to be among the more "progressive" in Michigan.
school population comprised 3,383 K-12 students.

The

Following the

in te rv ie w e r’ s description o f the Systems Plan fo r Program Development,
Superintendent Five asked:
cation today?

How f a r ahead can we plan in public edu­

Can f iv e years of planning be f i s c a l l y sound?

His

experiences with boards o f education whose composition was everchanging and whose continuity o f in t e r e s t was e r r a t ic led him to
question whether even three years o f planning could be projected.
The c itiz e n s committees and the network of communications
implied by the model caused Superintendent Five great consternation.
He expressed a fear of an unmanageable process in which goals and
objectives were constantly changing, influenced by one or a small
number o f persistent individuals who, under the guise of the annual
updating of a fiv e -y e a r plan, would deviate from previously id e n t i­
fie d needs.

He questioned whether innovation, in th is instance,

was not too much of a ris k and whether i t was possible to be account­
able fo r decisions and actions.

He asked i f the costs of goals

established through the systems-planning process were always accu­
r a te ly estimated and i f , on goal attainm ent, a cost-effectiveness
analysis was performed.

In the end, Superintendent Five wondered

whether a superintendent could survive such an elaborate endeavor:

68

To him the model suggested the constant and ever-changing dynamics
of a process in which countermeasures could be taken to undermine
decisions made by the superintendent, regardless o f the incidental
nature of those decisions.
A superintendent from a moderately sized urban school d i s t r i c t
of 5,363 K-12 students was the la s t of the half-dozen interviewees.
A fte r reviewing the model, he expressed his concerns through several
questions.

The f i r s t was:

Is the model r e lia b le ; w i l l i t provide

consistent answers fo r various targeted needs?
question not uncommon among planners:

Second, he asked a

Are fin an cial and personnel

resources av a ila b le fo r implementation o f proposed programs, and does
the model deal with this question?
Superintendent Six wanted to know how the model was unique
in terms of what i t led i t s participants to do th at was d iffe r e n t
from having no planning model at a l l .

Another question concerned

how the model worked in comparison to other models with s im ila r or
identical purposes.

This inquiry stemmed from his search fo r other

means to achieve s im ila r results in less time.

F in a lly , he asked how

and when to procure s t a f f commitment to a planning model.
Mail Survey of Superintendents
Another method of generating questions from school superin­
tendents was mail and telephone in quiry.

In September 1980, the

w r ite r asked the Michigan State Department of Education fo r a l i s t of
a ll public school d is t r ic t s operating K-12 programs in 1979-80.

Five

hundred t h i r t y d i s tr ic ts were reported, along with 49 K-8 d i s t r ic t s .

69

Using 1979-80 school-year student populations, the K-12 d is tr ic ts
were lis t e d , beginning with the d i s t r i c t with the lowest student
enrollment and ending with the d i s t r i c t reporting the highest student
enrollment.

The in vestigator used this l i s t and chose the tenth

d i s t r i c t lis te d and every tenth d i s t r i c t th e re a fte r.

The resulting

sample of 54 d is t r ic t s refle cte d a range of d i s t r i c t sizes--from the
smallest, with 240 students, to the la rg e s t, at 36,208 students.

The

C ity o f D e tro it Public Schools was not included as the largest d is­
t r i c t because the regional subdivision of th a t d i s t r i c t gives a mis­
leading student-enrollment count.

Also, the w r ite r f e l t th at he was

not l i k e l y to receive an immediate response to the mail inquiry
from the D e tro it Public Schools.
A l e t t e r explaining the purpose of the study (Appendix Q); an
accompanying response form, s o lic it in g comments and questions (Appen­
dix R); and a graphic description of the program-development model
were mailed to the superintendent of each of the selected school d is ­
tric ts .

A brochure describing the planning project funded by Elemen­

tary and Secondary Act, T i t l e IV-C was also included in the packet,
as was a postage-paid return-addressed envelope.

West Bloomfield

Schools paid f o r the brochure as part of it s obligation to disseminate
information about the funded p ro ject; the postage-paid envelope was
part of the w r it e r 's personal expense.
The superintendent serving the d i s t r i c t as of June 1980 was
the addressee.

The w r ite r speculated that a number of in quiries were

not responded to because of a change in the superintendency.
packets were returned unopened.

No

Twenty-three respondents, or about

70

43 percent of the sample, completed and returned t h e ir surveys.
Eleven respondents requested a telephone conversation.

Including

these individuals in the respondent group would have yielded a 63
percent response r a te .

However, the w r ite r decided to use only those

questions presented in w ritin g in the compilation of typical questions
asked by school superintendents considering adopting a model fo r pro­
gram planning.

The investigator f e l t t h a t , in conversation, he

created an environment s im ila r to th a t o f the interviews conducted
with neighboring superintendents, and therefore redundant questions
would be asked.

Because the mail survey was intended to e l i c i t

responses under id en tical conditions, only those responses presenting
w ritte n questions were analyzed.
In general, the questions were s im ila r and evidenced three
major areas of concern.

The implementation of the model in re la tio n

to time expenditure was questioned most freq uen tly.

The a v a i l a b i l i t y

and use o f personnel, e ith e r s t a f f or c it iz e n s , was a second area o f
concern.

Third, but not less-often expressed, was a concern fo r the

a c c e s s ib ility of funds to support the a c t iv i t ie s and events incor­
porated in the model.

Among those respondents who indicated they

were a c tiv e ly involved in long-range planning, the questions were
based on experience and indicated there was a need to resolve fru s ­
tr a tio n when tim e, s t a f f , and finances were depleted.

The respond­

ents who had recently "thought" about long-range planning posed sim i­
l a r questions and concerns.

They requested tra in in g and information

on the techniques o f managing the systems plan as presented in the
West Bloomfield model.

71

More d e ta ils about the various kinds o f questions asked by
the respondents are given in the following paragraphs.

Included are

the questions th a t need to be answered to establish the s a l a b i l i t y o f
the model and to help the researcher draw conclusions about environ­
mental ch aracteristics th a t may determine the potential success or
f a ilu r e of the planning process.
To 17 respondents, the model seemed to be more e a s ily under­
stood i f i t was "read" from l e f t to r i g h t , using the chart.

In par­

t i c u l a r , Phase IV and succeeding phases seemed to describe events
th a t, when placed in sequence, were practical and f i t w ithin a recog­
nizable time frame.

Concerning pre-planning to Phase I I , respondents

raised questions about how long i t took fo r the participants to move
through the components.

In fiv e cases, superintendents challenged

the composition of the groups of people involved; they were p a rticu ­
l a r l y interested in whether school-board members had input.

The

superintendents were also concerned about how frequently nonparent
residents were d ir e c tly involved in the planning process.
Ten superintendents were pleased th at the model provided fo r
fa ilu re .

Those who shared th is fe e lin g indicated th at "we" often

feel fa ilu r e s are too risky and would benefit from the model's pro­
vision fo r recycling components.

Ten respondents remarked th at by

adopting th is model or one s im ila r to i t , the public would at least
be aware th at f a ilu r e was possible and would be less c r i t i c a l o f
unexpected fa ilu r e s .

There was no common c h a ra c te ris tic about the

f iv e comments on th is matter except th a t superintendents apparently
were interested in long-range planning, not because o f declining

72

enrollments but because of a need fo r new programs to meet increasing
student demands.

Generally, these superintendents were from d is ­

t r i c t s with populations ranging from 3,400 to 4,120 K-12 students.
Superintendents in stable d is t r ic t s in the same studentpopulation range questioned whether the information obtained through
the planning process j u s t i f i e d the time and money expenditures.

The

question was raised not only with respect to the expenditure of time
and money, but also in regard to the use of human resources.

Several

superintendents perceived th e ir d is tr ic ts as lacking personnel
resources as extensive as those in West Bloomfield.

These same super­

intendents were concerned about the use of human resources in general;
that i s , they were uncertain whether they could r e c r u it as many par­
tic ip a n ts from the s t a f f and community as had been involved in the
p ilo t project a t West Bloomfield.

No less than seven superintendents

in d is tr ic ts with student populations between 3,000 and 5,000 voiced
a serious concern about t h e ir a b i l i t y to involve and manage so many
people.
Such questions as the following emphasize a more intense
concern about the use of personnel than about the use o f time and
finances.

Of the three general areas of concern, the use o f human

resources came through strongest when 14 superintendents asked:
Would a school d i s t r i c t come to the same conclusions by a less com­
plicated means?

Could not a d i s t r i c t generate the same information

by using fewer people, i . e . , i t s administrators?

Nine o f the same 14

administrators questioned the r e l i a b i l i t y of the information obtained
by using such a model.

More than h a lf of them asked about how

73

information could be discarded—and why.

A few asked a key question:

Is the information s u ffic ie n t to make decisions determined to be the
rig h t decision by everyone p a rtic ip a tin g , and what about those per­
sons who do not agree with information presented or decisions made,
based on th is information?

The w r ite r estimates that 50 percent of

the respondents expressed an in te r e s t in knowing how to deal with
discontented and disagreeable p a rtic ip a n ts .
The responding superintendents u n ive rs ally recognized the
importance of working p o s itiv e ly with s t a f f and residents.

Without

exception, the superintendents expressed concern about how to s o l i c i t
volunteers from a s t a f f fo r whom "volunteering" fo r extra duty was
l i t e r a l l y a thing of the past and fo r whom co llective-bargaining
agreements controlled the time and fin a n c ia l remuneration associated
with extra assignments or volunteer duties.
From ju s t a casual review of the response sheets, i t was easy
to see that ch ief executives o f public school d is tr ic ts were con­
cerned about involving t h e ir s t a f f members in the decision-making
process.

S p e c ific a lly , they were concerned about s t a f f manageability

and how i t could be achieved under the guidelines of the West Bloom­
f i e l d Model.

Doubtless, the West Bloomfield Systems Plan would

become more salable i f the apprehension regarding s t a f f management
were reduced.

In these days of h o s tile c o lle c tiv e bargaining, i t

was not unexpected th a t school executives perceived th is as a symptom
of nonparticipative attitudes among s t a f f members.

Although p a r t i c i ­

pation is a key element o f the planning model, the attitu d es o f those
p a rtic ip a tin g are more important than the numbers of p a rtic ip a n ts .

74

The expected reaction from respondents came fo rth in th e ir
inquiries regarding the recruitment and management of communityresident pa rticip an ts.

The reflectio ns of negative community a t t i ­

tudes seen in unsuccessful millage campaigns in many public-school
d is t r ic t s throughout Michigan, the scars l e f t on school superintendents
who had lived through hours of v in d ic tiv e harassment before crowds
at public board-of-education meetings, and confrontations by in d i­
viduals on the telephone or in person, at home or at the o f f i c e , were
vivid and foreboding.

The message received by many superintendents

made them apprehensive about any decision-making process in which
results are d ir e c tly related to positive c itiz e n p a rtic ip a tio n ,

A

c r i t i c a l concern expressed by nearly three-fourths of the responding
superintendents was voiced by one who administered a d i s t r i c t of
13,810 students.

He stated his primary need was to establish c o n fi­

dence and a strong public image among his constituents.

He f e l t the

s t a f f needed to develop a high degree o f professionalism in order to
survive the pressures of declining enrollments, school closings, and
depleted fin an cial resources.

To look to parent involvement was not

s u f f ic ie n t , he wrote, even though they performed e n th u s ia s tic a lly
when dealing with vandalism and disrespectful behavior among students
and could re la te to accreditation studies and vocational-education
surveys.

He f e l t parents were ill-p re p a re d to consider a lte rn a tiv e s

fo r tr a d itio n a l s ta ffin g patterns or programs changes a ffe c tin g
student achievement.

He said th a t i f the model presented a clear

picture o f how he could deal with the professional needs of the d is ­
t r i c t and concurrently create rapport between s t a f f and residents,

75

he guessed th at would be a positive outcome of using the model.

He

suggested th a t the s a l a b i l i t y of the model depended on how knowledge­
able and to le ra n t participants became a f t e r several months o f involve­
ment in the planning a c t i v i t i e s .

The in vestigator interpreted th is

as a representative, c r i t i c a l question—one that was equally important
to superintendents from a l l sizes of d i s t r i c t s .
P articipan t Interviews
To determine fu rth e r the s a l a b i l i t y of the planning model,
the researcher also interviewed selected administrators who had
actually experienced the events described in this d is s e rta tio n .

Of

those c e n tr a l- o ff ic e administrators, building principals and as s is t­
ants, department d ire c to rs , and supervisors employed before the West
Bloomfield project began and s t i l l employed as o f th is w r itin g , fiv e
persons were selected to respond to a l i s t o f ten questions posed
by the researcher.

The selected individuals had a c tiv e ly p a r t i c i ­

pated in the planning project and had taken part in a ll o f the programdevelopment phases.

To provide a representative selection o f i n t e r ­

viewees, one elementary-school p r in c ip a l, one middle-school p rin c ip a l,
one department supervisor, the high-school p r in c ip a l, and the assistant
superintendent fo r instruction were asked to p a rtic ip a te .

A ll readily

agreed and were provided with ten questions before the interview ses­
sion.

Appendix S contains the l i s t of questions presented to the

interviewees.
Three administrators chose to be interviewed in a group s e t­
tin g , which was highly conducive to an exchange o f ideas through an

76

informal, fr ie n d ly conversation.

The interchange stimulated t h e ir

recollections of a c t iv i t ie s associated with the planning project
that they might not have interpreted as being meaningful or relevant
under other conditions.

The fiv e individuals voiced as many concerns

about the s a l a b i l i t y of the model as they had questions about th e ir
own personal involvement in the project.
The elementary-, m iddle-, and high-school principals re c o l­
lected no personal consternation or discomfort on f i r s t being in t r o ­
duced to the systems-plan model, even though they had had no previous
experience with program-development models.

The e f fe c t of the planning

model on these three administrators was s im ila r to it s e ffe c t on the
two others.

I t forced them "to look ahead and plan more c a r e fu lly ."

I t also provided a forum fo r seeking input from others, which broad­
ened t h e i r understanding and scope o f thinking about managing th e ir
respective schools.

Both formal and informal past administrative

experiences provided a high degree of understanding about the possible
personal effe c ts o f the long-range planning project.
The fiv e administrators agreed t h e ir management procedures
had changed as a re s u lt of the project.

Previous management styles

were reinforced, and they learned to use t h e ir s k i l l s more e ffe c ­
tiv e ly .

In p a r t ic u la r , the building principals perceived th e ir j u r i s ­

diction encompassed broader re s p o n s ib ilitie s and was directed toward
more comprehensive goals as a re s u lt o f involvement in the planning
process.

A ll confirmed that using advisory groups had become an

integ ral part of t h e ir management ro u tin e , whereas before this proce­
dure had only been in c id e n ta l.

A ll fiv e administrators understood

77

management by objectives.

They mentioned both positive and negative

aspects of a systematic approach to management.

One administrator

admitted he i n i t i a l l y had d i f f i c u l t y learning to d is c ip lin e himself
to comply with the management-system process but l a t e r recognized i t
as a means of self-improvement.
A ll f iv e administrators agreed th a t long-range planning had
become a routine part of t h e ir management s ty le .

They stated:

" I t is

now a part of my personal l i f e s t y le ."

" I t has become lo g i­

c a l."

" I t is e s s e n tia l." "I am sensitive to the p o s s ib ilit ie s of

disappointment experienced when plans are not f u l f i l l e d . "

A ll fiv e

respondents perceived each of the planning components to be important
to planning ahead.

The components lis t e d most frequently were assess­

ment of needs and desires, inventory of resources and groups, id e n t i­
fic a tio n of input devices, and statin g goals s p e c ific a lly .

Of added

in te re s t was t h e ir agreement th a t group-decision-making processes
have to be learned and are an integral part of long-range planning.
No
any aspect

more meaningful

question was askedthan whether, generally,

o f the plan was s t i l l operating in the d i s t r i c t a f t e r the

termination of the Long Range Planning P ro ject's experimental period.
Two administrators said the c itiz e n s ' governance committees were
s t i l l active as a d ire c t re s u lt of the p ro ject.

Two others named

improved budgeting methodology, and the f i f t h said public relation s
had been g rea tly improved because o f the p ro je c t.

One administrator

vehemently declared th a t l i t t l e new had been undertaken during the
project period and th at the same things would have been done anyway.
He re ite ra te d th a t everything th a t had been done had been tr ie d before

78

fin an cial support became unavailable.

The federal a llo c a tio n then made

the experimentation possible, according to his appraisal.
The administrators lis t e d both positive and negative outcomes
of the project.

On the negative side, they perceived th a t group com­

position was unstable, as evidenced by the changing membership.
Respondents also said th at group members expected too much to come
about as a re s u lt of th e ir e f f o r t s , thereby convincing others to think
more would be accomplished than was possible.

They pointed out th at

the d i s t r i c t administration lo s t c r e d ib ili t y when some of the plans
could not be implemented.

They also pointed out th at p a rtic ip a n t

expectations could not always be s a tis fie d .

Referring to the time

when the seven o rig in al study groups had been combined into th ree,
the administrators remarked th a t management had imposed th is manipu­
la t iv e technique.

Further, they f e l t management had been especially

s k i l l f u l in using the group process and had not completely trusted
the p a rtic ip a n ts ' common sense.

Even though one administrator f e l t

more negative than positive feelin gs had been generated among par­
tic ip a n ts , the others re fle c te d on a new s p i r i t th a t had been gen­
erated when residents began to look at the school as a part o f th e ir
community.
The administrators expressed pleasure in having had an oppor­
tu n ity to be involved in problem areas th at were not normally within
th e ir ju r is d ic t io n , i . e . , areas th a t might previously have been
lab elled "someone els e's business."

They also appreciated receiving

information they might not otherwise have received.

In general,

79

these administrators were enthusiastic about the so cia lizin g and the
informal conversations with parents, other residents, and s t a f f .
The f in a l questions asked o f the f iv e administrators e li c it e d
meaningful answers and provoked additional questions.

When given an

opportunity to suggest what they would have done d i f f e r e n t l y , the
wide range of responses included the following:
done i t at a l l . "

"I would not have

"The reason fo r attending most o f the group sessions

was usually a devious in ten t on the part of most p a rtic ip a n ts ."
Another believed the process was a viable vehicle fo r input in
decision making, which required the commitment of everyone involved.
Only one of the fiv e administrators emphasized the essential
nature of the special funding that had been made av aila b le fo r this
model project.

One cautioned against establishing undeliverable

expectations, whereas another advised promising less than was known to
be possible, in order to produce ex h ila ra tin g resu lts.

One adminis­

tr a to r expressed fru s tra tio n because 30 percent of the group member­
ship had changed during the process; he saw the groups functioning as
p o lit ic a l groups, applying pressure on the board of education.
Two of the administrators would have preferred to move a
l i t t l e more slowly or "into lesser fro n ts ," commenting th a t a slower
approach would have stretched the monies fu rth e r and allowed more of
the suggestions made by the task groups to be completed.

Another

administrator concurred with th at opinion; he thought a slower approach
would have allowed hidden leadership to emerge— concurrently suppress­
ing negative leaders and supporting the p o sitive ones.

He f e l t the

naivetd o f the group leaders about e ffe c tiv e and e f f i c i e n t group

80

behavior discouraged a l l but one or two members from s triv in g fo r
leadership roles.
One o f the administrators, probably summarizing the feelings
of a l l f i v e , raised two key questions.

He asked, "In the beginning,

how was i t determined th at this process should be adopted?" and "What
did i t do or not do fo r kids?"
Analysis
The researcher thoroughly analyzed the questions and concerns
expressed by those who participated in the interviews and the mail
survey.

He reduced the numerous questions to the following l i s t ,

which was both manageable and representative of those asked:
1.

Did implementation require excessive expenditure of time?

2.

What amount of time was required to move through a l l the

components of the model?
3.

What was the a c c e s s ib ility of fin a n c ia l resources to

support the a c tiv itie s ?
4.

What happened a f t e r the project period when time, s t a f f ,

and finances were reduced?
5.

How did personnel become available?

6.

How were volunteers recruited?

7.

Did board members have input?

8.

What was the ideal group composition?

9.

How were parent and nonparent citizen s managed together?

10.

How was dissonance treated?

11.

What about o rie n tin g , educating, and train in g participants?

81

12.

Were positive public images created?

13.

Was the information generated r e lia b le and s u ffic ie n t

fo r decisions?
14.

Would the school d i s t r i c t have reached the same conclu­

sions by a less-complicated process?
Answers to these questions evolved during the time when the
w r ite r made presentations to school d is t r ic t s interested in the
Systems Plan Model.

He prepared materials to o rie n t interested

persons to the model, and the project s t a f f conducted workshops fo r
groups investigating systems-plan models.

Many questions were answered

in the informational report submitted to the Michigan Department of
Education to meet the requirements o f the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act, T i t l e IV-C grant.
No attempt was made to rank order the questions in order of
importance.

The answers appear here in the same order in which the

questions were presented above.

The w r ite r grouped questions with

related content to help the reader detect s im ila r it ie s between ques­
tio n s .

In some cases, answers to several questions were combined

when the content suggested a topical relation ship .
Question 1
Some participants in the Long Range Planning Project thought
excessive time had been expended on project a c t i v i t i e s .

Implementa­

tio n required approximately 25 percent of the project d ire c to r's
normal working time and s lig h t ly less of the project secretary's
time.

Both individuals had other r e s p o n s ib ilitie s .

Often the

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adm inistrative and c le r ic a l time devoted to the project was not
scheduled during the regular work day or week.

That i s , i t was often

necessary to work on evenings and weekends to accommodate c itiz e n
p a rticip an ts.

Teachers, students, and administrators attended evening

meetings and weekend workshops in addition to t h e ir regular assign­
ments during the five-day school week.

Thus, i f spending time in

addition to the regular work week is interpreted as excessive, the
answer to th is question is "yes."

I t is e s s e n tia l, however, to

analyze the results o f the project before determining whether the time
expended was excessive.

A ttitu d e changes were measured, programs

were designed and implemented, and procedures were improved as a
d ire c t re s u lt of the project; th is negated any fe e lin g th at time was
expended beyond what was necessary fo r goal attainment.
Question 2
The amount of time required to move through a ll the components
of the model was established when i t was introduced in February 1975.
The la s t phase of the systems plan to have a ta rg et date associated
with it s i n i t i a t i o n was Phase V, I n i t i a l

Implementation of P ilo t

Programs, which was scheduled to occur 31 months a f t e r February 1975.
The a c t iv i t ie s in Phases VI and V II were conducted annually, as these
components were activated whenever new programs were i n i t i a t e d and
old ones recycled.
Question 3
Forty-three months passed between adoption of the model and
implementation o f i t s fin a l phase.

The researcher spent more time

83

than any other person on a c t iv i t ie s d ir e c tly related to the p ro ject.
Nonemployee participants spent much less time on the project during
the summer months than did administrators and s t a f f .
In the West Bloomfield School D i s t r i c t , fin an cial resources
were not allocated to the systems plan fo r the 1976-77 school fis c a l
year.

Therefore, the process was delayed.

When funding from both the

Elementary and Secondary Education Act, T i t l e IV-C grant and local
resources became av aila b le in June 1977, the project was reactivated .
By September 1978, Phase V was completed and Phases VI and V II were
in place.

I n i t i a l l y , finan cial resources became a v a ila b le from

lo c a l-s c h o o l-d is tr ic t appropriations to support the West Bloomfield
Systems Plan fo r Program Development.

Those funds covered the project

manager's sa lary, se cretarial wages, materials and supply costs, con­
su ltan t fees, and automated data-processing services.
In the second year, when the board of education fa ile d to
a llo c a te funds, the project came to a h a lt.

This researcher, the

superintendent, and others sought other funding and were successful.
They contacted and presented grant applications to the United States
O ffice of Education, the Michigan Department o f Education, several
county-government agencies, and a number o f p riva te foundations th at
had expressed in te re s t in the model.

When the Michigan Department

of Education guaranteed Elementary and Secondary Education Act,
T i t l e IV-C monies in the second competition period (June 1976), the
researcher concentrated his e ffo r ts on monitoring the project and
spent less time seeking additional fin an cial resources.

84

Upon receipt o f the federal funds, the board of education
agreed to provide supplementary fin an cial support i f "in-kind" time
and remuneration were acceptable under the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act, T i t l e IV-C regulations, as determined by both state
and federal guidelines.

As i t turned out, tim e, m aterials, and man­

power contributions constituted supplementary support.

Therefore,

local funding did not exceed what had already been budgeted fo r
salaries and materials associated with development of curriculum and
other programs fo r the school year.
Question 4
A fte r the project period expired, ce rtain aspects of the
systems plan were c u rta ile d .

The O ffice o f Planning and Evaluation,

the d ire c to r's position, and the s e creta ria l position were eliminated.
However, the specific re s p o n s ib ilitie s were s t i l l assigned to the
d i s t r i c t project manager and his part-tim e secretary.

The programs

i n it ia t e d during the project period continued to be monitored as
planned.

Members of the advisory committees continued t h e ir work,

and the various phases o f the model provided guidance fo r program
evaluation and recycling.

In other words, the process was operating

and continued to function with the necessary s t a f f and fin an cial
commitments constituting the management-by-objectives format adopted
by the d i s t r i c t .
Questions 5 and 6
From the inception o f the model through the subsequent adop­
tio n of the systems plan, people expressed concern about how to involve

85

personnel in the planning a c t i v i t i e s .

The vast number of participants

required fo r the various phases was frightening to those who a n t i c i ­
pated a lack o f volunteers.

With employees, i t was assumed that

monetary compensation was the best in cen tive, and released time from
classroom duties the second best, fo r in stru ctio n al s t a f f to become
involved.

Thus, a f t e r the Phase I Overview Planning, which involved

only volunteers fo r the needs-assessment committees, the goal-building
groups, and the surveys, s t a f f members received stipends fo r time
expended, as specified in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act,
T i t l e VI-C proposal.

Parents, students, and other residents volun­

teered t h e ir time.
A special kind of recruitment e f f o r t was conducted to assemble
the people needed.

P rim a rily , th is e f f o r t consisted in promoting

any idea that promised improved conditions fo r everyone.

From the

beginning, positive attitudes were generated through e ffo r ts to por­
tray an appealing scenario o f the future educational advantages fo r
the children in the West Bloomfield Schools.

For parents th a t was

persuasive; fo r s t a f f and students, i t was s u f f ic ie n t ly encouraging
to warrant th e ir in te r e s t.

During the f i r s t three phases o f the plan­

ning process, people volunteered because they were convinced they
could make a meaningful contribution to a plan fo r an improved fu tu re.
Question 7
Board-of-education trustees were encouraged to attend and
p a rtic ip a te in a l l a c t iv i t ie s associated with the planning project.
The d ire c to r or the chairpersons of the respective committees generally

86

i n it ia t e d mail in v ita tio n s or phone contacts to these in divid uals.
Often the superintendent would v i s i t group a c t iv i t ie s and take along
a board member.

Three of the seven board members accepted membership

on committees during the 1977-78 project year.

Almost always, these

individuals asked to be considered nonvoting committee members.

All

board members attended the group-dynamics workshops, as did a l l admin­
is t r a to r s .

These a c t iv i t ie s were always announced well in advance;

attendance by trustees and administrators was interpreted as a d ire c ­
tiv e from the superintendent.
At most regular board-of-education meetings, especially during
the 1977-78 year, the agenda included one or more items regarding
progress on the planning a c t i v i t i e s .

Discussions at these meetings

provided board members an opportunity fo r input and in q u iry; in addi­
tio n , information was disseminated to the public by the audience in
attendance and by jo u rn a lis ts whose reports regularly appeared in
local newspapers.
Question 8
No p a rtic u la r group size or composition proved to be more
e ffe c tiv e than another.

From the outset, p a rtic ip a n t groups were

composed o f persons recommended by administrators, active members
of support groups, s t a f f volunteers, students delegated to the task,
and residents drawn by random sampling.

Consequently, group size

and composition varied.
Needs-assessment committees generally maintained a membership
of 10 to 15 in divid ua ls.

The v a lid a tio n committee was composed of

87

two delegates from each of the 18 o rig in al groups; the superintendent's
charge specified th at number.

Each of the task forces th at evolved

from the group-dynamics workshops had from 8 to 17 members, depending
on residents' attendance; s t a f f members attended reg u larly.
By the time the planning process reached Phase I I I , a speci­
fie d number of participants was proposed fo r the c it iz e n s ' committee
to develop a fiv e -y e a r plan.

The committee had 13 members because

that seemed to be a manageable number; i t was neither too small to
encourage the exchange of ideas nor too large to control dialogue
stimulated by varied a ttitu d e s .

Seven parent/residents, two teachers,

two administrators, and two students composed the regular committee
appointed by the board in January 1978.
importance of th is p a rtic u la r group.

The model suggested the

With the support of the superin­

tendent, the administrative team, and the project d ire c to r, the
committee proceeded to f u l f i l l i t s charge in the time a ll o t t e d .

Ques­

tions regarding ideal group size and composition might well be
answered by examining th is group as a model fo r group planning.
Questions 9, 10, and 11
Parent and nonparent citizen s who participated in the a c t i v i ­
tie s never created c o n flic t th a t could be a ttrib u te d to the fa c t that
some had children in school and others did not.

No one observed a l l

meetings a t a ll times, but during the months in which group planning
was a c tiv e , this w r ite r saw no disruptive behavior th at could be
a ttrib u te d to a resident p a rticip an t having children in school.
Dissonance among group members and between groups occasionally v/as

88

disruptive.

Individuals who caused disruptions were gently reminded

by chairpersons or other participants (often an administrator) about
the purposes of the project and th a t cooperation from a l l members
would lead to goal attainment.

Many participants in the group-dynamics

workshops applied what they had learned about getting along with
others in the common e f f o r t .
The o rie n ta tio n , education, and tra in in g of participants was
a m ulti-faceted endeavor undertaken by the superintendent, the admin­
i s t r a t iv e team, and the long-range planning project d ire c to r .

Par­

tic ip a n t tra in in g began very ea rly because improving communications
and developing a process by which groups of people could function
productively were primary reasons fo r implementing the model.
Before the overview planning (Phase I ) began and even before
the board of education's formal commitment to systematic planning,
several inservice tra in in g a c t iv i t ie s were conducted with board and
adm inistrative personnel.

Several consultants who were experienced in

organizational development, group dynamics, and communications spent
three afternoons and a weekend during the year working with these
personnel.

The formal and informal tra in in g they received carried

over into the goal-building and needs-assessment a c t i v i t i e s .

In

other words, the administrators in leadership positions used a ll the
s k ills they had learned to tr a in other p a rticip an ts.
The two major day-long workshops conducted fo r participants
ea rly and la t e in the 1977-78 project year focused on group decision
making and were conducted by a consultant and the project d ire c to r.
These p a rtic ip a n t-tr a in in g e ffo rts were funded by the Elementary and

89

Secondary Education Act, T i t l e IV-C grant and were designed to be
components o f the planning model, which received extensive examination
by other school d i s tr ic ts interested in re p lic a tin g i t .
Question 12
When the project was terminated in spring 1978, the p a r t i c i ­
pants frequently commented th a t good feelings about other residents
and school personnel had been generated.
local press were also po sitive.

The images created in the

One of the recommendations made by

a task force was th a t the school d i s t r i c t employ a public-information
d ire c to r to continue creating positive public impressions of school
programs.
Well over 1,200 participants were involved in the
a c tiv itie s .

project

However s lig h t th e ir involvement was, at le a s t some of

the participants became aware of the school organization's e ffo r ts to
improve.

No s p e c ific measurement of positive public attitu d es was

attempted; speculation following successful millage increases and
bonding approvals indicated th at favorable images had been achieved.
Question 13
The numerous individuals and groups who worked on the project
generated an immeasurable amount o f information.

The value o f th is

information was determined by the decisions made by the board of edu­
cation as they considered the recommendations o f the various commit­
tees

contributing to the fiv e -y e a r plan.
A fte r the

funded project came to an end, a number of a c t i v i ­

tie s were i n it ia t e d in the West Bloomfield School D i s t r i c t on the

90

basis of information generated by planning committees.

Some o f these

a c t iv i t ie s are as follows:
1.

Public relations and public information dissemination

became a regular part of the management re s p o n s ib ilitie s .
2.

The id e n t ific a tio n of leadership among the residents of

the community became an important aspect of including citizen s in
continued planning.
3.

The ranking of needs to be met by the annual budget

included the information generated by the c it iz e n s ' committees.
4.

Several programs incorporating curriculum revisions were

implemented and evaluated as a resu lt o f recommendations made by
long-range planning committees.
5.

Workshops and other types of inservice a c t i v i t i e s were

scheduled to enhance the professional growth o f administrators, s t a f f ,
and board members.
6.

Goal building, planning, and using group dynamics were

established as means by which decisions are made.
7.

Within three months of the pro ject's end, a d i s t r i c t -

wide commum'cations-governance model established c itiz e n s ' advisory
committees fo r every building and every major department of management
in the school system.
8.

Information generated by the systems-planning process

caused the d i s t r i c t ' s decision makers to adopt the techniques tested
during the ye ar, when the model was f u l l y operational.

91

Question 14
When this researcher and others presented the d e ta ils o f the
systems-plan model to prospective adopters, someone always challenged
the elaborate nature of the Systems Plan fo r Program Development.
In essence, potential adopters were concerned about the value o f the
model:

i f , in p rac tice , a simpler method could be used to reach the

same decisions.

The answer to th at question was seldom less compli­

cated than the schematics of the model i t s e l f .
One has only to look at the decision-making methods used in
other school d is tr ic ts and organizations and determine the comparative
degree of s im p lic ity to decide whether the results were worthwhile.
Yes, a school d i s t r i c t could reach the same conclusion through a
less complicated process than th at used in the systems plan.

However,

the in d ire c t results o f the e f f o r t were immeasurably valuable to the
West Bloomfield Schools and could not have been gained through a
simpler process.
The Systems Plan fo r Program Development was established as
one part of the school d i s t r i c t ' s decision-making process.

A schematic

representation o f the more elaborate plan by which the d i s t r i c t manages
the tools used and evaluated since the demonstration project is shown
in Appendix T.

To conclude th at any other method would be more or

less successful would be to determine th at the model would be approp­
r ia t e fo r any school d i s t r i c t .
parameters o f th is research.

Such a conclusion would exceed the

CHAPTER V

FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The f i f t h and fin a l chapter of this dissertatio n contains
findings, conclusions, and recommendations related to the questions
asked by the participants surveyed in th is study.

Observation of the

systems-plan model produced answers to the questions.
exploratory questions posed in Chapter I were answered.

Thus, the f iv e
The in feren ­

t i a l nature of the answers demonstrates th a t the conclusions and
recommendations pertain to the conditions of s a l a b i l i t y necessary fo r
adoption of the model.

The researcher attempted to maintain an a t t i ­

tude o f o b je c tiv it y and to describe accurately the events that occurred
in the planning process.

In ad d itio n , he attempted to use good judg­

ment in providing conclusions and recommendations fo r s c h o o l-d is tric t
administrators who must decide whether to adopt or re je c t the West
Bloomfield Systems Plan fo r Program Development.
The w r it e r 's task would have been sim p lifie d i f an evaluative
description o f the systems-plan model answered a ll possible questions
about a l l possible situ a tio n s .

A computer might well have been used

to propose i n t e l l i g e n t , imaginative solutions to the problems asso­
ciated with implementing any plan fo r program development.

U ltim ately,

a complex, responsive environment is the best stimulus fo r te stin g the
value o f a planning process in which people r e la te to other people and
92

93

produce solutions to problems id e n t ifie d as being important through
a democratic process.
F in d in g s

A large number of participants in the study perceived the
amount of time, manpower, and fin a n c ia l support required to implement
the model to be excessive.

These three major areas of concern were

mentioned by v ir t u a l l y a ll of the superintendents interviewed, by
the mail-survey respondents, and by the sample o f administrators who
participated in the planning project.

The observations the researcher

made while he participated in the project v e rify th a t the findings
accurately r e f le c t the concerns o f the West Bloomfield p a rtic ip a n ts .
Concerns expressed by less than 10 percent of the p a rtic ip a n t respond­
ents and the project participants were considered in s ig n ific a n t and
are not reported in this disse rta tio n .
Thirty-one percent of the mail-survey respondents said the
model was easy to understand when read from l e f t to r ig h t , which c l a r i ­
fie d the chronological order o f a c t iv i t ie s in the planning process.
Forty-two percent asked how much time was required to reach the point
a t which a program was developed.

Thirteen percent asked about the

management of such a large number of people in the various groups.
Ten percent of the respondents said they lacked the adminis­
tr a t iv e personnel to implement a process li k e the West Bloomfield
Systems Plan.

Forty-two percent recognized the importance o f working

with s t a f f but were concerned about s o lic it in g volunteers from the
community.

Thirty-one percent id e n tifie d the strongest need to be

94

establishing a positive public image among the residents.

Half of

these respondents said s t a f f and parent in te ra c tio n was very impor­
tant and saw the endurance of participants as a challenge.
Twenty percent of the respondents appreciated the fa c t that
the model provided fo r f a ilu r e and recognized the need fo r recycling
goals that were not successfully implemented.

The ten percent who said

they were interested in long-range planning c le a rly indicated a need
fo r the guidance provided by the Systems Plan fo r Program Development.
None of the mail-survey respondents mentioned management by objectives
as a management process.
Ten percent o f the respondents questioned the fin an cial expen­
d itu re necessary fo r supporting the systems-plan model.

In general,

respondents indicated they perceived the model as a process added
onto routine administrative re s p o n s ib ilitie s .

Conclusions about the

model's s a l a b i l i t y depend on the value of the group process, which has
no price tag.

The ten percent of the mail-survey respondents who

questioned the composition of the groups did not equate administra­
tiv e time to cost.
Ten percent of the mail-survey respondents questioned the
value o f nonparent c itiz e n p a rtic ip a tio n .

A s im ila r percentage

asked i f public awareness of the decision-making process was important.
Twenty-two percent were concerned about dealing with discontended
participants and how they could be kept on t h e ir assigned tasks.
Ten percent of the respondents said the most threatening
aspect of i n i t i a t i n g the planning process in accord with the systems
model was personnel recruitment.

Ninety-seven percent o f the

95

respondents expressed concern about th e ir a b i l i t y to select group
participants without great d i f f i c u l t y .

The administrator p a r t i c i ­

pants a l l said they had serious concerns about the recommendations
they had made fo r group members from the beginning of the project
to the end.
Conclusions and Recommendations
Time: A C r it ic a l Element
When and where a school d i s t r i c t replicates the process used
in the West Bloomfield Systems Plan w i l l determine the exact amount of
time required to move through the components.

A small d i s t r i c t prob­

ably w ill have the same number of id e n t ifia b le needs as a large one.
The attainment o f those needs depends on whether the necessary
resources are allocated fo r planning and program implementation.

The

amount of administrative time dedicated to program development relates
d ir e c tly to the number o f people involved in the planning process.
Restrictions imposed by lim ite d finances, m ate ria ls, and time
released from "other" re s p o n s ib ilitie s can be a lle v ia te d by increasing
the number of people involved in planning.

I f the i n i t i a l commitment

is strong and guidance and tra in in g are provided, the major fa c to r to
ensure program success is the energy expended by volunteer p a r t i c i ­
pants.

The greater the number o f volunteers, the greater the amount

of energy generated.

This w r ite r recommends th at potential adopters

of the systems plan c a re fu lly consider the re s p o n s ib ility of managing
large numbers o f energetic volunteers.

The results are worth the

e f f o r t put fo rth by a conscientious adm inistrative team.

Regardless

96

of how many members make up th at team, every individual must be
responsible f o r managing group a c t i v i t i e s .
Authority and Control
Based on the experiences of the West Bloomfield administra­
t iv e team, th is w r ite r concluded that one person should be assigned
the supervisory and coordinating role of the systems-planning process.
In a small d i s t r i c t th a t might be the superintendent; in a large
d i s t r i c t , an adm inistrative assistant; in a moderately sized d i s t r i c t ,
any one of several principals or directors might f i l l
f u l l or part time.

the role e ith e r

I t is recommended that th is person be allowed to

function somewhat independently in pursuing fin an cial resources e x te r­
nal to the school d i s t r i c t , id e n tify in g ledership w ithin the p a r t i c i ­
pant groups, preparing and acquiring m aterials, and tra in in g personnel.
MBO as an Integral Part o f the Model
A modified management-by-objectives format proved to be a
highly successful method fo r appropriating administrative responsi­
b i l i t i e s and fo r evaluating interim success at timely in tervals dur­
ing the planning process.

The objectives assigned to the project

d ire c to r specified those tasks essential to progress.

The w r ite r

strongly recommends th a t annual goals established by a board of edu­
cation and related d ir e c tly to the long-range planning process be
converted into performance objectives fo r administrators.
MBO depends on id e n t if ia b le resources, fin a n c ia l and other,
and helps planners establish time lin e s , which are essential to keep
the planning process moving and a c t i v i t i e s easily observed.

To

97

recommend any other "system" of management would require testin g the
model under controlled conditions.

This p o s s ib ility suggests a topic

fo r future researchers.
Funding Essential to Success
Variations in funding a t the State Department of Education
level imposed uncertainty on the local school d is t r ic t s designated as
experimental sites in the same fis c a l period in which West Bloomfield's
Systems Plan fo r Program Development was established as a dissemina­
tion model.

The d ire c to r's sa la ry , wages fo r secretarial s t a f f , and

pa rticip an ts' stipends were the major fin an cial obligations incurred
in establishing such a plan.

Whereas few school d is t r ic t s o f small

to moderate size can afford to support an o f fic e of planning and
evaluation without additional funding, larger d is t r ic t s do not have
this d i f f i c u l t y .

However, i t is recommended that systematic planning

be incorporated in a ll organizations.

The re s p o n s ib ility fo r imple­

menting a planning process should be assigned to tra in e d , energetic
administrators who believe in experimentation, f u t u r is t ic s , and the
design and evaluation of programs th at can serve as models fo r other
organizations.
A fte r the project period, ce rtain components o f the model
that had been active before federal funds became a v aila b le continued
to function as before.

The project helped establish those components

as routine management practices.

The elements o f planning, i . e . ,

needs assessment, goal building, program implementation, and evalua­
tio n , were in place and continued to be followed when tim e, s t a f f ,

98

and finances were reduced.

Programs th a t had been designed and

implemented with project s t a f f and funds during the project period
continued to operate and were evaluated a t the in te rv a ls established
in the planning process.

Soon a f t e r the project ended, implemented

programs were perceived as no d if f e r e n t than the established practices
of the school d i s t r i c t .

In other words, the process i n i t i a t e d

through the pro ject was not recognizably "special'1 any longer; the
s t a f f accepted i t as a regular part of the school d i s t r i c t ' s operation.
C itize n P a rtic ip a tio n
A c t i v it ie s i n i t i a t e d during the planning project th a t involved
the many c itiz e n s and s t a f f in group planning sessions took on new
c h a ra c te ris tic s a f t e r the p ro je c t's demise.

No longer was there a

project d ire c to r to schedule, p u b lic iz e , and f a c i l i t a t e the numerous
events.

These r e s p o n s ib ilitie s f e l l to the building administrators

and department supervisors.

The administrators interviewed fo r this

research commented th a t the groups generated the year a f t e r the
pro ject were charged with new objectives and continued to function
as advisory groups with a c le a r purpose o f improving the school
d is tric t.
An in v e s tig a tio n of the v a rie ty of directio ns prescribed fo r
and/or taken by the numerous groups might uncover useful information
about how the dynamics o f group in te ra c tio n produced resu lts in a
systematic planning e f f o r t .

A question associated with th is recom­

mendation concerns the longevity o f the s k i l l s learned in the various
group-communications workshops held during the long-range planning

99

p ro ject.

The s a l a b i l i t y of the model was gained by answering th a t

question.

Analysis of the attitudes of p a rtic ip a n t administrators

established th at long-range planning, management o f group processes,
and c it iz e n p a rtic ip a tio n in decision making are important.
Group Dynamics and Recruitment
For those considering adoption, the s a l a b ilit y of the model
depends on how comfortable adopters fe el about accepting the chal­
lenge of re c ru itin g p a rtic ip a n ts .

In th is decade i t cannot be

expected th at people w ill give th e ir time and energy f r e e l y , even those
who consider a cause worthwhile.

For th at reason, the model allowed

recruiters to use any means of persuasion.

E ffe ctiv e methods included

(1) o fferin g released time fo r student participants and teachers,
(2) paying wages fo r a ll employees who were active beyond th e ir work
hours, (3) reimbursing expenses to and from v is it a t io n s it e s , (4) pro­
viding classroom materials and supplies, (5) paying fees to confer­
ences, and (6) providing food and beverages a t group meetings.
Parents and other residents were almost always recruited by someone
whom they knew and tru s ted , i . e . , a neighbor, a fr ie n d , or a building
p rin c ip a l.

Phone c a lls and personal conversations were the most

productive re c ru itin g methods.
Any school or organization administrator who is ready to
adopt the planning concept promoted by the model must be prepared
to p ro ffe r a ll possible reasons why p a rtic ip a tio n w i l l re s u lt in an
improved fu tu re .

Id en tifyin g methods other than those proven suc­

cessful in West Bloomfield is an important reason to continue

100

experimentation, observation, and f i e l d research.

The method

employed in West Bloomfield was a successful way to r e c r u it s t a f f
and c itiz e n participants and is a salable process.
The Role o f Board-ofEducation Trustees
Throughout the program-development process, the project period,
and during the year when fin a n c ia l re s tric tio n s diminished the longrange planning e f f o r t , the role of board-of-education trustees was
much more than a casual one.

As policy makers, the individuals func­

tioned only as part of the to ta l board a t regular meetings when action
on the planning a c t iv i t ie s was required.

As parents, residents, and

committee members, several board members made major contributions to
the completion o f the tasks a t hand.
Optimism proved to be the watchword fo r board members who par­
tic ip a te d in group sessions.

The presence of a board member did not

discourage but rath er encouraged progress.

I n i t i a l l y , board members

had to be on guard to ward o f f requests fo r promises of re s u lts .
Members who endorsed the concept the model promoted, who practiced
the best ethical behavior or proper school-boardsmanship, and who
attended the various workshops th at focused on interpersonal communi­
cations provided the best models fo r those who considered adopting
the process in other communities.
The amount of s a tis fa c tio n perceived by board members who used
both informal and formal input procedures can only be measured by
analyzing fin a l production and personal a ttitu d e s .

Potential adopters

of any model must be aware o f the value of support received from board

101

members and also the danger of disaster i f uncooperative board mem­
bers surface a f t e r the planning process commences.

Likewise, s im ila r

concerns increase the p o s s ib ilit ie s fo r id e n tify in g the board’s
c o lle c tiv e and individual a ttitu d e s toward planning.

Future research­

ers could attempt to discover the a ttitu d e s th at promote successful
plan implementation and those th a t weaken under typical p o l i t i c a l ,
so cia l, and personal pressures.

The study of how boards a rriv e at

decisions is complex but is important to the student of planning or
the organizational leader who is thinking o f adopting a planning model.
Leaders should undertake with caution any re p lic a tio n of the
planning process i f board members are not made aware of requests put
fo rth by c it iz e n s ' groups at board meetings.

No analysis of the

innumerable disasters or successes of such an endeavor can forewarn
an adopter o f a l l the possible reactions board members might have to
citizen -g ro u p s1 requests.

When board members are caught unaware of

those requests, disastrous results are l i k e l y .

The systems-planning

project in West Bloomfield provided ample evidence from which to con­
clude th a t the decision-making body (the board o f education) advocated
c itiz e n s ' recommendations.
This researcher recommends th at investigations o f the decision­
making process be undertaken to id e n tify the conditions th a t stimulate
advocacy planning.

The in tric a c ie s of group decision making uncover

a reason to t e s t the r e l i a b i l i t y of a long-range planning process fo r
program development in educational organizations.

102

Ideal Group Size and Composition
The researcher can add very l i t t l e about his findings regard­
ing ideal group size and composition, how p a rtic u la r personalities
function together, how dissonants are detrimental to group success,
and how best to o r ie n t, educate, and tr a in p a rticip an ts.

Much has

already been w ritte n about these topics in the volumes of groupdynamics lit e r a t u r e .

I t must be r e ite r a te d , however, th at thorough

train in g of participants is more important than any other e f f o r t to
promote group success.
One major conclusion drawn from the project experience was
th at the s k i l l s of the group-dynamics consultant who p a rticip ate d in
the various administrator and p a rtic ip a n t workshops were very impor­
ta n t.

The person best suited fo r th is resp o n s ib ility in West Bloom­

f i e l d was c a re fu lly selected and proved to be prepared and w illi n g to
s triv e fo r the success o f the systems plan.

Any recommendation fo r

potential adopters must include stressing the need to consider care­
f u l l y the potential contribution of a consultant employed fo r p a r t i c i ­
pant tra in in g .

Not unlike the superintendent, the planning d ire c to r ,

or a board trustee or committee chairperson, the consultant can be a
central fig u re in developing relationships among participants and
ultim ately influence the success of the planning e f f o r t .
In West Bloomfield, the consultant became more than a paid
resource person.

In tim e, he contributed a great deal by being per­

sonally concerned about the future o f the school d i s t r i c t .

Not a

resident o f West Bloomfield, he soon ran fo r the board o f education
in his home community and was elected.

There his e f f o r t to establish

103

a process of systematic planning fo r educational-program development,
re p lic a tin g the West Bloomfield model, was successful.
This researcher recommends th a t adopters should fe el confident
in the dedication with which a consultant provides guidance fo r t r a i n ­
ing p a rticip an ts and shares h is /h e r s k i l l s with the leaders in the
school organization .

Researchers have already noted the importance

o f consultants' contributions.

Students o f psychology and related

behavioral sciences may do well to in ves tig a te the appropriate per­
s o n a lity t r a i t s o f the ideal group-dynamics consultant.

In educational-

program planning, the benefits o f such research are unlim ited.
Public Opinion
Before 1976, when the system-plan model was implemented,
voters often responded negatively to mi 11 age requests.

A fte r 1978,

when the model was activated as part o f the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act, T i t l e IV-C p r o je c t, voters' responses to requests fo r
renewed and increased millages were co nsistently p o s itiv e .

To pro­

duce evidence o f improved p o sitive public images, one must look to
information such as th a t found in the record o f the voting e le c to ra te .
In 1973, 1974, and 1975, th is researcher conducted a communitywide a t titu d e survey o f a s t r a t i f i e d random sample o f the resident
population.
or B.

A ll three years, the respondents rated the schools C+

In 1978, follow ing a period o f three years in which no surveys

had been conducted, respondents to the same survey question rated the
schools B+.

In 1979 and 1980, ratings o f B+ and A -, re s p e c tiv e ly ,

were reported.

104

Replication o f the Model
Groups o f people with goals s im ila r to those established by
the residents in the West Bloomfield School D is t r ic t may very well
a rriv e a t d iffe r e n t recommendations fo r how to a t ta in those goals.
Any place or time the model fo r a systems plan is re p lic a te d , there is
no guarantee th a t the information generated w ill be id en tical to th at
found in West Bloomfield, even i f problems appear to be id e n tic a l.
However, i t is u n re a lis tic to conclude from this th a t the information
generated by the systems plan is u n re liab le.
The information generated through a thorough review of data
was made available to the several committees functioning during the
project period.

In a sense, the committees served the board o f edu­

cation as an in ves tig a tive team, i . e . , a q u a lity control th at occurred
before the board received information on which to base i t s decisions.
The w r ite r cannot conclude whether this information was any more
r e lia b le than what could have been produced haphazardly.

Scientists

interested in planning processes implemented by organizations under­
taking program development should develop tests to determine the
r e l i a b i l i t y o f p a rtic u la r planning processes.
Based on the researcher's observations, the board of education
had s u ffic ie n t information with which to make decisions regarding
planning-project committees' requests or recommendations.

O ff ic ia l

records of board-of-education meetings included pertinent comments
made by board members and audience participants fo r the school years
1976 through 1978.

The practice a t West Bloomfield was to have com­

mittee representatives or adm inistrator-1iaison representatives attend

105

board meetings a t which questions about the program might a r is e .
Over time, this proved to be a valuable means o f c la r ify in g concepts
and adding commentary to provide the board with s u ffic ie n t informa­
tio n .
The Model as a Guideline fo r Others
S im plicity and ease seem to be words th at school executives
frequently use as c r i t e r i a fo r a planning model.

Managing the Systems

Plan fo r Program Development in the West Bloomfield School D is t r ic t
was never simple or easy.

Yet the model i t s e l f is simple in design

and can be described and explained with ease.

This researcher,

Superintendent Herman, and other school administrators were never
unable to present the model and simultaneously explain the advantages,
drawbacks, and a lte rn a tiv e approaches to reaching success with the
model's guidance.
The survey of school superintendents showed th a t most o f them
understood the model a f t e r examining the graphic design.

This

researcher also made fu rth e r explanations to c l a r i f y misunderstandings.
These explanations almost always described management s tra te g ie s ,
thereby increasing s a l a b i l i t y and meeting the needs o f those who
sought an easier way to plan fo r the future.
The most important conclusion drawn from this research is
th at less-complicated models may be more salable but not more e ffe c ­
tiv e than the West Bloomfield Model.

Superintendents' desire fo r a

simpler way to develop programs suggests th a t they prefer to make
decisions without c itiz e n involvement and th a t c itiz e n p a rtic ip a tio n

106

poses a th re a t to those superintendents who fe a r unanticipated
re s u lts .

I t is the unexpected outcome, the product of the group

process, th a t threatens those who hope to administer school d is t r ic t s
free o f c ris is and c o n f lic t .
Experimentation as a Key
to Future Models
As the re s tric tio n s imposed by fin an cial depression b e fa ll
school d is t r ic t s today, i t is imperative to recommend th at more
experimentation be conducted in the area o f systems planning.

Never­

theless, state departments of education, intermediate school d i s t r i c t s ,
and private agencies interested in organizational development must
provide resources fo r local d i s tr ic ts to experiment.

As more and more

c itizen s demand input and c r i t i c i z e the management of programs in pub­
l i c schools, there must be an increase in the number of models devel­
oped to include c itiz e n p a rtic ip a tio n in the decision-making process.
The improvement of public opinion w ill be unlimited.
I t is recommended th a t experimental settings in public schools
be provided in communities of varied sizes in which leaders desire
group dynamics, c itiz e n p a rtic ip a tio n , and long-range program develop­
ment.

Observation of these a c t iv i t ie s by s k ille d and conscientious

researchers w ill establish guidelines fo r those who decide to r e p l i ­
cate the processes and the re s u lts .

U ltim a te ly , i t is the results

th at establish the means to determine the value of any systematic
planning process.

Various models, created from successful and other­

wise productive processes, w ill then be salable to potential adopters.
The s a l a b i l i t y of any single model, s p e c ific a lly the West Bloomfield

107

Systems Plan fo r Program Development, w i l l continue to be tested
with o rig in al questions and in unique environments.

As the researcher

reported in th is evaluative description, s a l a b i l i t y of systems plans
can be determined when these plans are examined in a va rie ty of
organizational environments.
The West Bloomfield Systems Plan Model has been tested over
more than four years and has proven the s a l a b i l i t y of the process
described in this d is s e rta tio n .

When school administrators are pre­

pared to commit time, personnel, and finances to the attainment of
educational goals, they w i l l b e n e fit from the adoption of th is model.

ADDENDUM

108

ADDENDUM

Coincidental to the completion of th is evaluative study, a
group of researchers gathered to prepare a synopsis of t h e ir findings
about planning in educational organizations.

C lark, H uff, Malkus, and

McKibben (1980) conveyed two important messages, which suggested th at
planning systems f a i l in educational organizations because they are
based on inaccurate assumptions.

The f i r s t message uncovered the

flaws generally found in current educational planning fo r school improvement programs a t the national le v e l.

The second stressed the

need fo r a lte rn a tiv e perspectives on planning in which many more per­
sons could p a rtic ip a te than that which is t r a d it io n a l.
The assumptions upon which educational-planning systems are
based describe the most common causes fo r f a ilu r e o f planning models:
1.

Educational organizations are goal driven,

2.

follow rational and sequential processes,

3.

operate in predictable environments, and

4.

have e ffe c tiv e in ternal monitoring.

The absence o f these conditions challenges school administrators to
seek more adaptive concepts in which in fo rm a lity , d iv e r s it y , and
f l u i d i t y provide new purposes f o r planning.

Decision makers in

present educational organizations frequently adopt management systems
such as Program Planning and Budgeting System and Zero-Based Budgeting

109

no
in order to i n s t i l l p r e d ic t a b ili t y , r a t i o n a l i t y , and s p e c ific it y and
to elim inate inconsistent and unclear technology.
C riticism levied a t educational organizations is j u s t i f i e d
whenever goals are established as a re s u lt of planning and not
a p rio ri.

The inconsistent preferences o f school administrators often

create weak linkages between organizational goals and personal desires.
Consequently, there remains a challenge to decision makers to achieve
goals by planning rather than pretentiously accepting outcomes o f
expired a c t iv i t ie s and c a llin g them goals.

Thus, the educational

organization becomes less anarchical and more l i k e l y to garner posi­
t iv e responses from its constituents.
I t is not unusual to fin d outcomes o f p a rtic ip a tiv e planning
th at were not stated in original goals.

Educational planners must be

prepared to acknowledge these outcomes and accept them as a natural
aspect of organizational l i f e th a t can be incorporated in a systematic
planning process.
Huff (1980) presented the role of the planner as people
oriented, with no best single strategy fo r matching needs to processes.
In e v ita b ly , a commitment to systematic planning must incorporate i n i ­
t i a t i v e and c r e a t iv it y as well as acceptance of the r e la t iv e structure
of a planning model.

David L. C lark, Anne S. Huff, Mark Malkus, and Sue McKibben, New Perspectives on Planning in Educational Organizations. "In Consideration
of Goal-Free Planning: Ihe f a ilu r e of Traditional Planning Systems,"
"Evocative Metaphors in Human Systems Management," and "Planning to
Plan" (San Francisco: Far West Laboratory, January and November
1980).

APPENDICES

m

APPENDIX A

WEST BLOOMFIELD PUBLIC SCHOOLS MODEL—SYSTEMS PLAN
FOR PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT

112

WEST BLOOMFIELD PUBLIC SCHOOLS
MODEL - SYSTEMS PLAN FOR PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT

February

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APPENDIX B

PROJECT DIRECTOR'S LETTER TO SELECTED PARTICIPANTS

114

115

October 5, 1977
With considerable pleasure I am able to share some good news with you
regarding a fe d e ra lly funded grant recently received by the School
D is t r i c t . At several Board o f Education meetings in the la s t year,
I have described the grant proposal and now want to o ffe r d e ta ils to
the many persons I hope w i l l become interested and involved.
In 1975 our Board of Education adopted a Long Range Systems Planning
Model fo r Program Development. During 16 months of productive a c t i v i t y ,
a comprehensive needs assessment was conducted and a 5 Year Plan adopted
by the Board, The School D i s t r i c t became known as one of only a few
nationwide where long-range planning was a c tu a lly a t work.
At th at time a considerable amount of information about the Model was
d istribu ted throughout the Schools, Community, it s residents, students
and s t a f f . Nearly 258 people were d ir e c tly involved in the needs
assessment and p r io r it iz in g a c t i v i t i e s .
Soon th e r e a fte r , finan cial support fo r the planning model became
re s tric te d and the related a c t iv i t ie s came to a near h a lt . With the
good fortune of having been granted $40,000 of E.S.E.A. T i t l e IV-C
funds fo r the 1977-78 school year, we can again ac tiva te the model
and it s second, th ird and fourth phases.
I am asking fo r your help. In order fo r the planning model to suc­
ceed, two hundred students, residents, parents, fa cu lty and s t a f f
must again become involved in the group dynamics outlined in the
Systems Plan.
Up to th is date I have not been able to meet personally with
you in d iv id u a lly . I look forward to th at opportunity.

each of

Your name was submitted to me by one of our administrators who thought
you would be interested and w illi n g to share in th is planning experi­
ence.
Beginning a t 12:30, and through the afternoon u n til 5:30, on Saturday,
October 22, I would li k e you to attend a workshop with the other
participants and learn the d e ta ils of the exciting tasks ahead.
At th is f i r s t session we w i l l be scheduling a series o f meetings.
Please bring along your personal calendar so you can mark the most
convenient future dates.
Dr. Howard Carlson, a consultant in organizational development, w ill
meet with us in the West Bloomfield High School Forum, where we w ill
spend the afternoon learning about the in te n t of the project and how
each person can be involved. I hope you w ill attend.

116

The primary goal of the project is to provide a means by which commu­
n ity involvement can help the D is t r ic t in the attainment of i t s goals
and provide new and proven programs fo r the young people in our
schools.
I look forward to seeing you October 22nd. In the meanwhile, you may
contact me i f you have specific concerns. We w ill attempt to answer
the many questions you have during the f i r s t meeting, which has been
scheduled in the West Bloomfield High School Forum.
Yours sincerely,

John H. White
Project Director
JHW/rg

APPENDIX C

LONG-RANGE PLANNING PROGRAM— FIRST MEETING AGENDA

117

118

WEST BLOOMFIELD SCHOOL DISTRICT
LONG-RANGE PLANNING PROGRAM
Orientation Meeting
October 22, 1977
12:30 p.m.

MEETING BEGINS with Welcome and Opening
Remarks..............................................................

Introductions, Objectives and Overview
o f Today's Meeting.......................................

R. PI aunt
President, Board
of Education
J. White
Program D irector

Discussion o f the "State of the School
D is t r ic t" (Sub-groups)...............................

H. Carlson

One-on-One In terview s.....................................

All Participants

Sharing Back with the Total Group

Sub-group
Spokespersons

What This Program Is All About and
How I t Ties I n ...............................................

J. White

Sub-group Discussion of the Program and
I t s Potential Impact on Our School
D i s t r i c t ............................................................

H. Carlson

Question and Answer Panel.............................

J. White,
Sub-group
Spokespersons

ROLLING BREAK
Learning How to Decide Things Together
(Exercise on Individual vs. Group
Decision Making)...........................................
Sign-Up Process: Learning Task Forces
and Workshops to Launch ThisProgram..
4:30

MEETING ADJOURNED with Closing Remarks..

H. Carlson
J. White,
A ll Participants
J. White

APPENDIX D

STATE-OF-THE-SCHOOL-DISTRICT RESPONSE FORMS

119

120

November 1, 1977
Dear
You w i l l fin d here a l i s t o f statements describing "theState of the
School D is t r ic t" reported by the discussion-group spokespersons a t
the October 22, Group Dynamics Workshop. Instead of continuing an
attempt to have a ll 7 spokespersons meet together, I am asking your
response in th is manner.
Within the next three days, please check those statements th a t you
feel accurately r e f le c t th a t which was said by a spokesperson a t the
Workshop. Change those statements you feel are in co rre ctly stated;
s trik e out those statements you feel were not said. Add statements
you feel were made but do not appear here.
Then return the statements to me no la t e r than Monday, November 7.
I have attempted to place each of the statements in one of four major
areas of concern in order to avoid duplication.
Please c a ll on me i f you have questions. A fte r your response I w ill
prepare a l i s t to be p r io r it iz e d by the group before the next work­
shop.
Yours sin cerely,

John H. White
JHW/rg

121

COMMUNICATION
The Board does not lis te n to teachers, parents or students.
Board meetings are not democratic.
The Board needs to improve public re la tio n s .
There is a c r e d ib ili t y gap between parents and school board.
There is a lack of parent involvement and lack o f awareness
on the part of parents as to what kids are doing.
There is high potential in this d i s t r i c t .
There are people who s t i l l care but are fr u s tra te d .
We need to develop respect fo r each other.
Communication between the community and the Board is poor.
ADMINISTRATION
There is bad communication involving adm inistrators,
parents and community, teachers and students.
How much money is there? Parents and teachers want to have
copies o f budget and have representatives involved with budget.
The bu ild in g -leve l administration is most in flu e n tia l in
i n i t i a t i n g parent involvement.
There is contradicting information to parents from
Administration and teachers.
More parent-teacher involvement in school decision making
is needed.
There is a lack of decision-making processes.
Administrators don't lis te n or lis te n and don't react.
We are not here to serve an administration but to work
together fo r a common goal: to b e n e fit our d i s t r i c t .
The administration demonstrates a poor a ttitu d e in th a t:
They don't tr e a t teachers as professionals.
The real potential of teachers, parents and students in
th is d i s t r i c t is not being used.

122

The administration does not lis te n to teachers/parents
and students.
A bad a t t it u d e , generating from higher levels and f i l t e r i n g
down, has become permanently in s ta lle d .
CURRICULUM
Student i l l i t e r a c y is seen as a major problem.
Money is wasted on media equipment, etc.
There is need fo r more counseling, more professional counsel­
ing, more trade-school emphasis.
There is a concern that educational standards are not keeping
pace with the population growth.
Set a standard lit e r a c y level and achieve i t .
There is a lack o f contact with neighboring d is t r ic t s as to
program improvements.
There is no continuity in curriculum from elementary to the
high-school le v e l.
Class sizes are too large in some cases.
More individual attention needs to be given to students from
teachers.
Reading program needs evaluation as to it s success in the
instruction o f grammar.
There is a lack of integration of our curriculum.
There is a need fo r programs fo r g ifte d students.
STAFF
Employees feel high fr u s tra tio n .
We have a devoted teacher s t a f f .
Administrators t e l l teachers what they want to be taught
and do not confer with teachers.

123

Hiring coaches should be secondary to hirin g majorcurriculum-area s p e c ia lis ts .
Over-all low morale is demonstrated by low p a rticip atio n
of teachers in P.T.O. a c t iv i t ie s and many students who
have a poor a ttitu d e toward learning.

APPENDIX E
STATE-OF-THE-SCHOOL-DISTRICT SUMMARY

124

125

November 17, 1977
Dear Friends,
At the October 22nd Planning Workshop a l i s t of statements regarding
"The State o f the School D is t r ic t" was produced in small-group sessions
and presented in a large-group discussion. At the end of th a t day, i t
was agreed th a t the spokespersons of each small group would attempt to
determine which statements were important and represented the feelings
o f the p a rtic ip a tin g c it iz e n s , students and s t a f f . Following th at
determination, the to ta l group would be asked to p r i o r i t i z e the
expressed concerns so th a t fu ture workshops can be designed where we
can get factual information regarding common concerns.
You w ill find enclosed with th is note a l i s t o f the statements v e r i­
fie d by the group spokespersons placed in to four major areas of concern.
In order to prepare fo r a workshop scheduled fo r a l l day Saturday,
December 3rd (MARK YOUR CALENDAR AND PLAN TO ATTEND!!), I need your
response to the q u e s tio n ... How important are these concerns?
W ill you please
follow these steps and return the l i s t to me in
enclosed postpaid envelope by November 28th.
1.
2.

3.

4.

the

Read the complete l i s t .
S trik e out those statements you feel are not appropriately
placed in one of the four areas.
a.
Add any new areas you feel should be added on page 3.
b.
Place statements you deleted from one area in to any other
or into the new areas you've added.
c. Add statements o f your own.
Place a number from 1-100 in each space to the r ig h t of the
area t i t l e s and statements in d ic a t in g ... How important you
feel th is statement is .
a. 100 is the highest possible point value.
b. 1 is the lowest possible point value.
Do not tr y to have statements in each area add up to 100
to ta l points.

Remember... Each statement has a possible value o f 100. Try to r e f le c t
how you feel each statement indicates an important concern and how some
are more important than others.
Example:
DISCIPLINE ( 75 p ts )
Students are rude to parents.
Suspensions from school are frequent.
Teachers should grade students according
to a common code of ethics.

57
14
82

126

ATTENDANCE ( 30 pts)
Tardiness to class is common a t the senior
high school.
Absence from school is a home problem.
Illn ess is a poor excuse fo r missing
school.

_90
70
2

Thank you fo r your cooperation. I am looking forward to meeting with
you again December 3rd. Details and an agenda fo r the day w ill f o l ­
low soon.

John White
JW/rg
Enclosure

127

COMMUNICATION
Committee discussion is powerless.
The Board does not lis te n to teachers, parents or students.
There is no sense o f community.
liness in parents and students.

There is a lack o f frie n d ­

Board meetings are not democratic.
The Board needs to improve public re la tio n s .
The Birmingham Eccentric expresses only adm inistrative
viewpoints.
Parents have other demands, c a n 't get involved in school.
Working mothers c a n 't get involved.
Parents are not ac tive enough in the middle school.
There is a c r e d ib ilit y gap between parents and school board.
This is an ac tive community; i t has students with enriched
knowledge. Labor problems are over.
Meetings are dominated by a few powerful in d iv id u a ls .
There is a lack o f parent involvement and lack o f awareness
on the p art o f parents as to what kids are doing.
There is strong community in te re s t among parents.
There is good communication between parents and teachers.
Only l i p service is made to what committees do.
only set up to say, "Yes, we have a committee."

They are

There is too much "structure" and not enough f l e x i b i l i t y .
There is high p o te n tia l in th is d i s t r i c t .
There are people who s t i l l care but are fru s tra te d .
We need to develop respect fo r each other.
We need a lis te n in g workshop.
There is not enough parental feedback as to the q u a lity
o f education in the d i s t r ic t .

128

There is a great lack o f community involvement a t the
high-school le v e l.
Communication between the community and the Board is poor.
Communication between teachers and parents is good.
There is a lack o f communication between parents, teachers,
and students.
ADMINISTRATION
There is bad communication involving adm inistrators,
parents and community, teachers and students.
The high school is not fr ie n d ly .
How much money is there? Parents and teachers want to have
copies of budget and have representatives involved w ith budget.
The b u ild in g -le v e l adm inistration is most in flu e n tia l in
in it ia t in g parent involvement.
There is contradicting information to parents from
Adm inistration and teachers.
More parent-teacher involvement in school decision
making is needed.
There is a lack of decision-making processes.
Administrators don't lis te n or lis te n and don't reac t.
A b e tte r method of charging large fam ilies fo r a th le tic
events should be found.
We are not here to serve an adm inistration but to work
together fo r a common goal to b e n e fit our d i s t r ic t .
The adm inistration demonstrates a poor a ttitu d e in th a t:
They don't tr e a t teachers as professionals.
The real p o ten tia l o f teachers, parents and students in
th is d is t r ic t is not being used.
The adm inistration does not lis te n to teachers/parents/
and students.
A bad a ttitu d e , generating from higher levels and f il t e r in g
down, has become permanently in s ta lle d .

129

The adm inistration a t the middle-school level and boardo ffic e level is incompetent.
Students "pay" fo r a ll problems because th e y 're on the
bottom.
Administrators are not well prepared fo r s t a f f meetings.
CURRICULUM
Student i l l i t e r a c y is seen as a major problem.
Waste o f money on media, equipment, etc.
There is no knowledge o f q u a lity o f education between parents.
There is need fo r more counseling, more professional coun­
s e lin g , more trade-school emphasis.
There is a concern th a t educational standards are not keep­
ing pace with the population growth.
R egistration needs improving.
The curriculum is not challenging enough fo r college-bound
students. There is a need fo r vocational s p e c ia lis ts in
counseling.
Discuss the state o f the school d i s t r i c t . Strength--The
vocational schools and English department a t West Bloomfield
High School are strong.
There is a need to build learning experiences.
Set a standard lite ra c y level and achieve i t .
Student aides should be u tiliz e d a t high-school le v e l.
There is a need fo r elementary-school recreation equipment
and books a t the high school.
There is a lack o f career o rie n ta tio n .
There is a lack o f contact with neighboring d is tr ic ts as to
program improvements.
There is no co n tin u ity in curriculum from elementary to the
high-school le v e l.
Class sizes are too large in some cases.

130

More individual a tte n tio n needs to be given to students
from teachers.
Physical education needs more life -o r ie n ta te d s k ill s .
Reading program needs evaluation as to i t s success in
the in stru ctio n o f grammar.
There is a lack of in teg ratio n o f our curriculum .
There is a need fo r programs fo r g ifte d students.
STAFF
Counselors do n't exert themselves.
Employees fe e l high fru s tra tio n .
We have a devoted teacher s t a f f .
Teacher-planning hours need to be rescheduled.
A long-term poor a ttitu d e is foreseen.
Teachers do n't ask fo r parent p a rtic ip a tio n .
Administrators t e l l teachers what they want to be taught
and do not confer with teachers.
Individualism should be attain ed between students and s t a f f .
More input from students is needed.
H iring coaches should be secondary to h irin g majorcurriculum-area s p e c ia lis ts .
The general a ttitu d e among teachers since contract s e t t le ­
ment is good, with cooperation outstanding.
O ver-all low morale is demonstrated by low p a rtic ip a tio n
o f teachers in P.T.O. a c t iv it ie s . Many students have a
poor a ttitu d e toward learn ing .
O ver-all q u a lity o f teachers is not adequate in s p ite of
current job market, although students are generally s a tis fie d .

131

Workshop P a rtic ip a n ts 1 Responses to "The State of the D i s t r i c t , 1'
October 1977
Problem Areas
COMMUNICATION
There Is high p o ten tia l in th is d i s t r ic t .
Communication between the community and the Board is poor.
There are people who s t i l l care but are fru s tra te d .
The Board needs to improve public re la tio n s .
There is a c r e d ib ilit y gap between parents and school board.
We need to develop respect fo r each oth er.
There is a lack o f parent involvement and lack o f awareness
on the part o f parents as to what kids are doing.
The Board does not lis te n to teachers, parents or students.
Board meetings are not democratic.

Ave. Points
74
72
70
68
__
63
58
__5£
40

ADMINISTRATION
We are not here to serve an adm inistration but to work
together fo r a common goal to b e n e fit our d i s t r i c t .
The real p o ten tia l o f teachers, parents and students in
th is d i s t r ic t is not being used.
More parent-teacher involvement in school decision making
is needed.
There is bad communication involving ad m in istrators, par­
ents, and community, teachers and students.
The b u ild in g -le v e l adm inistration is most in flu e n tia l in
in it ia t in g parent involvement.
How much money is there? Parents and teachers want to
have copies o f budget and have representatives involved
w ith budget.
There is contrad icting information to parents from Admin­
is tr a tio n and teachers.
Adm inistrators d o n 't lis te n or lis te n and d o n 't re a c t.
The adm inistration does not lis te n to teachers/parents/
and students.
The adm inistration demonstrates a poor a ttitu d e in th a t:
They do n't tr e a t teachers as professionals.
A bad a t titu d e , generating from higher lev els and f i l t e r i n g
down, has become permanently in s ta lle d .
There is a lack o f decision-making processes.

77
72
66
65^
64
62
62
54
53
53^
48
44

132

CURRICULUM
Reading program needs evaluation as to it s success
in the in stru ctio n o f grammar.
There is a need fo r programs fo r g ifte d students.
More individual a tte n tio n needs to be given to students
from teachers.
There is need fo r more counseling, more professional
counseling, more trade-school emphasis.
There is a lack o f in teg ratio n o f our curriculum .
There is no co n tin u ity in curriculum from elementary to
the high-school le v e l.
Set a standard lite r a c y level and achieve i t .
Class sizes are too large in some cases.
Student i l l i t e r a c y is seen as a major problem.
Money is wasted on media equipment, e tc .
There is a lack o f contact w ith neighboring d is tr ic ts as to
program improvements.
There is a concern th a t educational standards are not
keeping pace w ith the population growth.

70
68
67^
64
60
59
57
56
50
48
48
43

STAFF
Employees fe e l high fru s tra tio n .
H iring coaches should be secondary to h irin g majorcurriculum -area s p e c ia lis ts .
We have a devoted teacher s t a f f .
O ver-all low morale is demonstrated by low p a rtic ip a tio n
o f teachers in P.T.O. a c tiv itie s and many students who
have a poor a ttitu d e toward learn in g .
Administrators t e l l teachers what they want to be taught
and do not confer with teachers.

66
60
58
52
47

APPENDIX F

LONG-RANGE PLANNING PROGRAM—SECOND MEETING AGENDA

133

134
WEST BLOOMFIELD SCHOOL DISTRICT LONG-RANGE PLANNING PROGRAM WORKSHOP
December 3, 1977
9:30 a.m.

Coffee and doughnuts

9:45 a.m.

Workshop begins with opening remarks,
overview o f today's workshop and what
w ill have been accomplished by 4:00 p.m. . .

J . White

Exercise on Individual vs. Group
Decision Making .....................................................

H. Carlson

B rie f look a t the "State o f the D is tric t"
Survey re s u lts : Formation o f Planning
Teams ..........................................................................

Getting-to-Know-You Process ............................
(Listening C irc le s )
12:00 Noon

Lunch

12:30 p.m.

Lecturette on Understanding the Change
Process ......................................................................
Putting the Consensus Method o f DecisionMaking to Work: How to Approach and
Manage a Project (Exercise) .............................

J . White,
Indi vidual
p articip an ts
H. Carlson,
Planning teams

H. Carlson

H. Carlson,
Planning teams

Turning to the Job Ahead o f Us
. P r io r ity Setting ...............................................
. D e fin itio n o f Goals, Charge to Be
Given Our Team

J. White,
Planning teams

. Election o f Chairperson
Group Discussion: How We Might Begin to
Approach Our Task .................................................
(Resource Center av aila b le fo r consultation)
Sharing Back with the Total Group—
Charge, Nature o f Approach, Date o f
Next Meeting ...........................................................

4:00 p.m.

Planning teams,
Resource people

Team spokes­
persons

Evaluation o f today's workshop .......................

H. Carlson

Workshop adjourned ...............................................

J . White

APPENDIX G
WORKSHOP ACTIVITY— PRIORITY RESOURCES

135

136

Your committee has received $1,000, allocated by the Board o f Edu­
cation fo r your use to solve the problems stated here. You may spend
the money as you wish. You must spend a ll o f the money and must spend
more on the most important problems, less on the le a s t im portant.
Remember th is is a group decision.
CURRICULUM
Reading program needs evaluation as to it s success
in the in stru ctio n o f grammar.
There is a need fo r programs fo r g ifte d students.
More in divid ual a tte n tio n needs to be given to students
from teachers.
There is need fo r more counseling, more professional
counseling, more trade-school emphasis.
There is a lack o f in te g ra tio n o f our curriculum .
There is no c o n tin u ity in curriculum from elementary
to the high-school le v e l.
Set a standard lite r a c y level and achieve i t .
Class sizes are too large in some cases.
Student i l l i t e r a c y is seen as a major problem.
Money is wasted on media equipment, e tc .
There is a lack o f contact with neighboring d is tr ic ts as
to program improvements.
There is a concern th a t educational standards are not
keeping pace with the population growth,

$
j
$
$
1[
$

t
£

t
f

$
£

$

TOTAL COSTS

$1 ,000

APPENDIX H
COMMITTEE MEETING SCHEDULES

137

138

December 21, 1977
Dear Friends,
Before the holiday recess from school moves us in to the new ye a r, I
thought a b r ie f report about the Long Range Planning Program a c tiv itie s
would be o f in te re s t to you.
At the December workshop session the particip an ts decided to in vestigate
three problem areas which were id e n tifie d a t the e a r lie r October work­
shop. Consequently, a sub-committee o f parents, students and s t a f f is
planning to propose a lte rn a tiv e methods fo r improving

and

1.
2.
3.

DISTRICT COMMUNICATIONS
DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION
DISTRICT CURRICULUM AND STAFF.

Each sub-committee has met once since then and has scheduled a series o f
meetings between now and February when everyone w ill meet again to report
on the progress made.
I hope you are s t i l l interested in being informed and involved in the
Long Range Planning Program. Because many people were unable to attend
the December workshop, the chairpersons are s t i l l seeking to add par­
tic ip a n ts to th e ir respective subcommittees. Please plan to meet with
the group o f your choice in January. Their next meetings and the c h a ir­
person you should contact are lis te d here:
Teri S p in e lli
363-8828

DISTRICT COMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE
Meeting, Saturday, January 14, 1978, at
9:00 a.m. in Board o f Education conference
room

Charlene P erin jie n
851-1616

DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE
Meeting, Thursday, January 19, 1978, a t
3:00 p.m ., Room 202, Orchard Lake Middle
School

O r v ille Kitzman
851-6100

DISTRICT CURRICULUM AND STAFF COMMITTEE
Meeting, Monday, January 9 , 1978, a t
7:30 p.m. in High School Media Center

Please c a ll my o ffic e i f you have questions.
Have a happy holiday and a prosperous new y e a r.

John White, D irecto r

APPENDIX 0

REPORT OF VISITATIONS, CONFERENCES, AND WORKSHOPS

139

140

WEST BLOOMFIELD SCHOOLS
Long Range Planning Program
Report of V is ita tio n s , Conference or Workshop
Name: _____________________________

Date o f V is it : ______

Topic o f V is it : __________________________________________
Location: ________________________________________________
Cost (Including Transportation): ________________________
1. B rie f Description: ___________________________________

2. What things did you learn th a t might improve the d i s t r ic t in terms
o f planning fo r the future? _________________________________________

3. Overall Evaluation o f V is it :
Excel!ent—-would recommend fo r others
Average
Below Average—would not recommend fo r others
Comments:__________ ___

_____________________________

4. How have you shared, or plan to share, the inform ation, esp ecially
with the Long Range Planning Task Force? _____________________________

I f additional space is needed, please use back o f sheet or attach
additional pages.
Copies:

1. - White copy— Planning D irector
2. - Yellow copy—Task Force
3. - Pink copy— P a rtic ip a n t
10 / 1/77

APPENDIX J

FIVE-YEAR PLAN AND PUBLIC RELATIONS
COMMITTEE CHARGE

HI

142

ESEA IV-C Project

West Bloomfield Schools 1977-78

5-Year Plan and Public Relations Committee
Description o f Committee:
13 members (c itiz e n s , s t a f f and students)
a c itiz e n chairman
Delegation:
Appointed by the Superintendent
C itize n chairperson appointed by the Superintendent
Time Frame:
6 weeks beginning January 16, 1978, thru February 28, 1978
Goal:
To present to the Board o f Education a 5-Year Plan fo r meeting
the expressed needs of the School D is t r ic t beginning with the
school year 1976-79 through the school year 1982-83.
Tasks:
To review the D is t r ic t Needs V alid atio n L is t produced in 1975.
To analyze the needs having been met and those not y e t met.
To suggest costs associated with needs not y e t met.
To id e n tify resources fo r meeting those needs.
To specify a chronological sequence o f needs and resources in
a time frame o f 1978 thru 1983.
To suggest a lte rn a tiv e s to id e n tifie d needs.
To design a communitywide network o f a c tiv itie s to inform
the c itiz e n s , s t a f f and students o f the 5-Year Plan.

APPENDIX K
FIVE-YEAR PLANNING COMMITTEE MINUTES

143

144

MINUTES—MARCH 20, 1978
FIVE-YEAR PLANNING COMMITTEE
WEST BLOOMFIELD SCHOOL DISTRICT

ATTENDANCE:

Carl Constant
Jeannine Mayone
Monte Nelson

Peg Morris
John White
Don S c h litt

Sorted "A" p r io r ity needs among the follow ing c la s s ific a tio n s without
determining a revised p r io r it y ra tin g :
Media
Special Education
C o-Curricular
Personnel

Maintenance
Building and S ite
Counseling

Curriculum—Academic, C u ltu ra l, Technical
(Vocational Education), Special Education
(G ifted Programs, too)

Carl Constant
CO-CHAIRMAN
CLC:fd

145

MINUTES APRIL 3 , 1978
FIVE-YEAR PLANNING COMMITTEE
WEST BLOOMFIELD SCHOOL DISTRICT

ATTENDANCE:

GUEST:

Judy Graning
Jeannie Mayone
Carl Constant
John White
Cindy Custer

Mark Hall
J u lie Rogers
Celeste C arroll
John Kerwin
Betty Lepak

Ted Cavin

PROPOSED FORMAT OF REPORT REVIEWED
1.

E xh ib its—Consolidated w ritte n reports fo r CHILD DEVELOPMENT
AND CONSUMER EDUCATION UNDER CATEGORY OF CAREER
EDUCATION and received new report from the Adminis­
tra tio n Task Force

2.

Cover L e tte r

3.

Comparison chart fo r 1975 "A" P r io r itie s and proposed category
summary

DEVELOPMENT OF RECOMMENDATIONS
1.

Reviewed "C u ltu ra l," Special Education and Technical Education

2.

Discussion—Why large number o f "A" p r io r it ie s

3.

Developed follow ing recommendation:
A.

Assign on fu ll-tim e basis an Adm inistrator to d ire c t the
Special Education program including the Magnet Plan fo r
g ifte d children so A ssistant Superintendent o f In stru ctio n
would now provide general supervision— program must consider
PRIORITIES 29, 144, 152, 161 and 164.

B.

Put "C ultural" p r io r itie s in to other categories.

Carl Constant
CO-CHAIRMAN
CLC:fd

high school

APPENDIX L

PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF FIVE-YEAR PLAN
ANNOUNCEMENT

146

147

Long-Range Planning Program,
An ESEA IV-C P roject
WEST BLOOMFIELD SCHOOLS
A Combined meeting o f the C itiz e n s ,
S ta ff and Students Task Forces
on Communications, Curriculum
and Adm inistration

You are in v ite d to attend a public discussion when the
C itizens 5-Year Planning Committee w ill report on:
"The School D is t r ic t's Needs,"
a plan fo r change, proposed fo r the years 1978 through 1978,
and
" P ilo t Studies fo r Improvement"
to be conducted as part of the Planning Program fo r the b e n e fit of
the Students in the West Bloomfield Schools.
Your presence is esp ec ially im portant.

DATE:

A p ril 13, 1978

PLACE:

The Abbott Middle School
Community Room
Orchard Lake, Michigan

The meeting w ill begin promptly a t 7:30 p.m.

I f you have questions or concerns, please c a ll John W hite, O ffice o f
Planning and Evaluation a t 682-3555.

APPENDIX M
PUBLIC DISCUSSION AGENDA

148

149

WEST BLOOMFIELD SCHOOLS LONG-RANGE PLANNING PROGRAM
APRIL 13, 1978
Combined meeting of C itiz e n s , S ta ff and Students Task Forces
.....................................
7:30 p.m.

A public djscussion .....................................

Introductions and Program Description . . John White
Task Force A c tiv ity Reports and recommen­
dations fo r P ilo t Studies to improve areas
o f expressed need. "The State o f the
D is t r ic t ."
CURRICULUM AND STAFF ..................................... O r v ille Kitzman
I.
Reading and Math Evaluation and Standards
II.
G ifted Students
III.
Class size and in divid ual a tte n tio n
IV .
Counseling
V.
Curriculum In te g ra tio n and A rtic u la tio n
V I.
Media
V II.
S ta ff
V III.
Parent Teacher Organization
........................................
ADMINISTRATION
Leadership and in -s e rv ic e to
enhance communication

Charlene P erin jia n

COMMUNICATION ..................................................
Services to the p u b lic , media and
s ta ff

T e rri S p in e lli

CITIZENS 5-YEAR PLAN ...................................

Carl Constant
Judy Graning

The modified and updated Needs
L is t—A plan fo r change
Discussion and Questions ...........................
Committee members, c itiz e n s , s t a f f
and students

Chairpersons

Wrap Up and Summary

John White

APPENDIX N
1978 FIVE-YEAR PLANNING REPORT

150

151

1978 FIVE-YEAR PLANNING REPORT
EXHIBITS— 1978

1.

Assignment

2.

Recommendations

3.

Committee members (attendance is a v a ila b le upon request)

4.

W ritten reports received
A.

Update o f Media items

B.

Career Education
1) Child Development Program
2) Consumer Education Survey Test

C.

1975 Needs V alid atio n Committee
1) "A" P r io r itie s L is t— 1975
2) Follow-up Status— 1977

D.

Task Force on Adm inistration

E.

Task Force on Communications

F.

Task Force on Curriculum and S ta ff

152

1978 FIVE-YEAR PLANNING COMMITTEE REPORT
APRIL 17, 1978
Board o f Education
West Bloomfield School D is tr ic t
c/o Dr. Jerry J. Herman, Superintendent
Our Committee has found the o rig in a l six-week assignment was too short
and the breadth o f the tasks greater than could be accomplished with
the resources u t iliz e d .
Due to the complex nature and changing mixture o f school funding, we
did not fe el capable o f suggesting costs associated with needs not ye t
met nor id e n tify in g resources fo r meeting those needs, such as the num­
ber of elementary school students in the Green School area. This
assistance should be av aila b le from the present S ta ff with aid from the
Oakland Interm ediate School D is tr ic t S ta ff and other existin g units
dedicated to the e f f ic ie n t adm inistration and development o f schools.
Services o f outside consultants who are s k ille d and experienced to f i t
a special need should be secured when the Board and Superintendent are
s a tis fie d our S ta ff has committed it s resources to higher p r io r ity
items. Moreover, because the p r io r itie s have been id e n tifie d , i t is
f e l t our S ta ff can advise how it s resources can be allocated and coupled
with a v a ila b le funds to accomplish the educational goals o f the West
Bloomfield School D is t r ic t .
The "A" p r io r itie s of 1975 have been grouped as follow s:
Maintenance, Building & Sites
Counseling
C o-Curricular
Personnel

Community Education
Media
Curriculum--academic,technical
(vocation al) and Special Service
(g ifte d )

This grouping o f the p r io r itie s dramatizes th at S ta ff e ffo rts and funds
must be committed and directed to accomplish more fo r Maintenance and
Personnel. The obsolescence o f our schools must be directed by sound
policy and so lid adm inistration so the f a c i l i t i e s age w ith m aturity
rath er than neglect! The large numbero f "A" p r io r it ie s associated
with Personnel also t e lls us th a t th is portion o f the budget needs
more than $ 's .
I f a number o f these p r io r itie s are to be accomplished, assignments w ill
change and programs w ill be discontinued, consolidated or increased as
the Board directs a re a llo c a tio n o f our resources. The Board needs
re g u la r, periodic feedback from our teachers and adm inistrators recom­
mending how resources could be u t iliz e d . A p a rt o f th is feedback must
include teachers' and adm inistrators' p a rtic ip a tio n in the selection

153

process as the Board considers the competing in terests o f the p r io r i­
tie s and decides what w ill be done. Then the students w ill have an
opportunity to b e n e fit from the investment o f parents and taxpayers.
To improve understanding and to enhance acceptance o f the Board's
decisions, i t is recommended th a t the S ta ff id e n tify each year what is
committed to the "A" p r io r it ie s . Furthermore, the Board should receive
data evidencing what has been achieved even i f expectations were not
re a liz e d . This "before and a fte r" p ictu re must be re la te d to the S ta ff,
the parents, the taxpayers and the students as i t is happening so th e ir
feedback can be considered on a tim ely basis.
S in cerely,

Judy Graning - Carl Constant
CO-CHAIRPERSONS
CLC:fd

154

Needs-Validation Committee
Update o f Media Items
Item # 8

Ealy—A ir condition media center--nothing has been done.

Item #18

Abbott—Media a d d itio n —nothing has been done.

Item #50

Media Personnel— nothing has been done— i f anything, we
have fa lle n s lig h tly behind.

Item #66

Media F a c ilit ie s — th is would include Items #8, 18 and an
addition to OLMS plus some minor changes in other bu ild in g s.
Roosevelt is the only building changed s ig n ific a n tly .

Item #76

Abbott—media equipment—we have improved s lig h tly in a ll
buildings but only Roosevelt has achieved the Five-Year
Goals.

Item #85

Abbott— lib ra ry books—we have improved in a ll buildings
but s t i l l have a long way to go.

Item #89

Scotch— implement the fiv e -y e a r projection fo r equipment and
software—we have progressed but not achieved the goal.

Item #94

Scotch— in s ta l 1 ad ditional e le c tr ic a l o u tle ts —not done.

Item #100

Media— Books and software (as stated in fiv e -y e a r plan)--w e
have improved s lig h tly each year but s t i l l have a long way
to go.

Item #123

Media— program—s k ills booklet w ill be a v a ila b le to s t a f f
soon— production improved—lim ite d by s ta ffin g needs.

Item #132

Media software—repeat o f Item #100.

Item #139

OLMS—Media Center equipment—some s lig h t progress.

Item #145

Media—C lo s e d -c irc u it TV—nothing done.

Item #164

Special Education— audio-visual equipment—we have attempted
to meet current needs from building a llo c a tio n —dependent on
fiv e -y e a r goals— need not completely met.

155

TO:

FIVE-YEAR PLANNING COMMITTEE
WEST BLOOMFIELD SCHOOL DISTRICT

RE:

CURRENT AND FUTURE
CHILD DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
WEST BLOOMFIELD HIGH SCHOOL

THE FOLLOWING PROPOSALS ARE MY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR DEVELOPING A BROADER
EDUCATIONAL SCOPE FOR MORE STUDENTS AT WEST BLOOMFIELD HIGH SCHOOL.
PART I .

Two a d d itio n a l sections of Child Development
A.

To be designated as
1) Related Child Development or
2) Research in Child Development

B.

These sections would be designed to be co-ordinated as a
re la te d course o f study to the Health Occupation Programs
as well as students enrolled in other helping f ie ld s , as
m edicine, nursing, psychology, or education.

These two

sections could operate a second pre-school program, pos­
s ib ly also involving some students in the Foreign Language
Areas.

There could be research done in the area of normal

c h ild development, as well as special areas o f speech prob­
lem s, language development, physical handicaps, e tc .

There

would possibly be some non-English-speaking pre-schoolers
in th is program who could be helped in the fu tu re school
adjustment by being with English-speaking peers.
C.

The course would be a minimum o f one semester on an
e le c tiv e basis.

D.

Minimum o f 15 to 20 students in each section.

156

E.

Problem area:

Scheduling and a v a ila b ilit y o f students,

time-wise and how would they be to ld o f it s importance
and r e la t iv it y ?
PART I I .

Extension o f ex istin g f a c i l i t i e s .
A.

SEE ACCOMPANYING DIAGRAMS.

The present f a c i l i t y can handle consecutive classes leading
in to the rooms which adjoin one another.

B.

The adjacent classroom, C-706 is cu rren tly an English
classroom, te n ta tiv e ly designated to become a storage area.
The wall between C-708 and C-706 could be removed and two
h a lf-w a lls could be in s ta lle d

as observation areas.

T h is,

o f course, would involve some funding at the d iscretio n of
th is body and the Board.
C.

This f a c i l i t y could then be used not only by the Child
Development Classes, but by the parents o f the pre­
schoolers; other classes, as Health; Psychology; Social
Studies, e t c ., as adjuncts to e x is tin g classes.

An oppor­

tu n ity fo r greater learning exists in the a v a ila b ilit y of
th is type o f learning s itu a tio n .
is used to the f u lle s t extent?

How can we see th a t i t

2 0 '- O "

3 0 '- ? "

CHILD DEVELOPMENT

CLOTHING

2 0 '-O '

2 0 '- O '

NEW

OBSEreVftTIOKi

juCHILD

AREA

DEVELOPMENT

159

PART I I I .

Relevant P olicies A ffectin g Enrollment
A.

An examination o f the number o f students who take reducedload schedules would in dicate a d e fin ite e ffe c t on the
number o f e le c tiv e courses being chosen.

B.

An examination o f current graduation requirements re fle c ts
th a t there are no requirements in the areas o f Fine A rts ,
In d u s tria l A rts , Home Economics or Business.

Perhaps one

or more o f these areas would provide a broader educational
foundation fo r the graduates o f West Bloomfield High
School.
PART IV .

P otential Student Contact and Involvement
A.

A te n ta tiv e survey o f the student body involving a random
sampling o f them is being worked out by myself and
Hr. P ia s ic k i.

I t is designed to encompass more than ju s t

the Child Development Courses and why students do or do not
en ro ll in th is type o f e le c tiv e subject.

The survey is not

y e t completed or d is trib u te d .
B.

The Student Government body has not ye t been approached,
since I understand Cindy is a very busy young lady.

Per­

haps the survey mentioned above would serve as a tool and
could be d is trib u te d and summarized by th a t group.
R espectfully submitted,

JOYCE THOMPSON

160

National te s t
Given to 100 College-Bound West Bloomfield High
School Seniors
Average score 27
Range 10 to 42
50% scored between 21 and 29 correct
"Consumer Economics": a proposed course fo r Seniors.
Under Home Economics the course w ill be p a r t ia lly
funded by government resources.

161

National Consumer Economics Test
1.

Which form o f charge account does not normally require the consumer
to present a c re d it card to charge a purchase?
a.
b.
c.
d.

2.

When a person buys any form o f l i f e insurance he does so in an
attempt to
a.
b.
c.
d.

3.

Parents' Magazine
product labels
the Department of H ealth, Education, and Welfare
the Food and Drug Adm inistration

A consumer hurried to his car dealer a f te r seeing a commercial th a t
advertised a two-year-old model a t $500 under what i t should cost.
The car had ju s t been sold, but a s im ila r model could be purchased
a t a s lig h tly higher cost. This technique is called
a.
b.
c.
d.

6.

require federal chartering o f corporations
estab lish fe d e ra lly enforced grade lab elin g o f products
buy only when w ell-estab lish ed price ce ilin g s fo r products e x is t
make informed choices based on price andq u a lity comparisons

A major source of r e lia b le consumer information on the safety and
effectiveness o f prescription and over-the-counter drugs is
a.
b.
c.
d.

5.

control his premiums
share the ris k o f losses
reduce the e ffe c ts o f in fla tio n
tra n s fe r the in divid ual losses to the government

The most e ffe c tiv e way the consumer can influence the sales price
o f the products in the marketplace is to
a.
b.
c.
d.

4.

Master Charge
Sears, Roebuck and Company
Bell Telephone
American Express

low b a llin g
adjusted markup
b a it and switch
loading

A program provided by applicance dealers to encourage customers to
pay fo r repairs in advance is
a.
b.
c.
d.

a service contract
a warranty
a guarantee
an in stallm en t plan

162

52.

One of the major obstacles to the consumer in the balance of
power between business and consumers is
a.
b.
c.
d.

53.

Which inform ation is not required on the lab els o f a ll food
products?
a.
b.
c.
d.

54.

ingredients
net weight
product name
name o f the producer or d is trib u to r

a chemical
an a d d itive
a drug
a food

An ea rly le g is la tiv e attempt by the federal government to protect
the consumer was the
a.
b.
c.
d.

NOTE:

the
the
the
the

The most common brands o f ch ild ren 's vitamin capsules are c la s s i­
fie d by the Food and Drug Adm inistration as
a.
b.
c.
d.

55.

the existence o f approximately fo rty federal agencies and
four hundred departments presently attempting to serve
consumers
the s p e c ific requirements established under le g is la tio n , such
as the F a ir Packaging and Labeling Act and the T ru th -in Lending Law
the existence o f a federal consumer court o f appeals
the p o licie s o f the S ecu rities and Exchange Commission

Truth-in-Lending Act
Pure Food and Drug Act
Flammable Fabric Act
Motor Vehicle T r a ffic Safety Act

Just the f i r s t and la s t pages o f the National Consumer Economics
Test are included here.

163

Proposed Course O utline
CONSUMER KNOW-HOW
Unit I

The Role o f the Consumer in the Economy
(How the economy a ffe c ts you)

Unit I I

Consumer Planning and Decision Making
(Values, goals, needs, wants and the decision process)

Unit I I I

Developing a Personal Spending Plan
(Making the most o f your money)

U nit IV

Ways to Increase Income
(The job market, use of s k ills and resources)

Unit V

A dvertising and Its Appeal
(Why you buy, inform ational and emotional ads)

Unit VI

Sources of Buying Inform ation
(How and where to look before you buy)

Unit V II

The A rt o f Shopping
(Food, c lo th in g , appliances, fu r n itu r e , car and
car insurance)

Unit V I I I

The Good L ife Through C red it
(How to use c re d it to your advantage)

Unit IX

Housing
(Rent or buy, lo cal m arket, signing a lease and
buying procedure)

U nit X

Financial Security
(Checking accounts, l i f e and health insurance,
savings and investments, Social S ecu rity)

Unit XI

Government Services andTaxes
(Where do your taxes go, making use o f services)

164

Unit X II

Your Consumer Rights and R espon sib ilities
{Using your rig h ts , making complaints, s h o p liftin g )

Unit X I I I

Consumer Protection
(Agencies and laws, avoiding gyps and frauds)

U nit XIV

The Consumer and the Environment
(What you can do, what's being done, what needs
to be done)

165

Needs Validation C o m m ittee
'VT Priorities
1.
G i r l ' l l - H iU ld a U fU ' H e m i l l M l v s r l i o d 1*1 i r i i r i c t h e m e i —
c l m u l m ; : a t G i c c i i S f J m u j h \ i K , .I i i j _:
1 1 | mpj in Li 1 mi Im*
J o l l s i ml m i s *
o

11 111

11

| i i l ] ) i l l l i ^ Jiul C m m iifs — JfmP'Hii i l l U i'f tk h* III H'l m \ ,if r i l tiul
le m m lH e d
m a r t ' U d j m T w i t h P n v x u n II . i m i i r i i n r d
hv
tt'a h e i r —K n - d i n r i w1 1h r a n l u l s i m l \ "J i l r i . i i l r d " j u t i h i j T i m i s
Jut i v i r h s e r v i c e i n In 1 | p f i h i i r r H ' i l a

;r.
K o i i 'f i r It — ri'pl.K f old \u m ln u sa sfn1*- u ill, i tm li'iii a |m .intn.i
s a s h ^ ,l ,i >v .4nd 11.«ni K ,
1.
A i l i u m t s i i . i i j v r — I . n n j i i f m i i l i s f m i j i m I - . n i l i* h | i' t m e " :
Fnnrlltn

HreomnieikhiHnfi

— ' f l u 1 S %^ I r i . j -- \ !j m ■1 iir

i*

S|H‘ 0 'i.»I S c m r e s — H u e a d m r t o r
tu rn e d as a s p r o u t educator*

cif s p e c ia l

educarim i

H.
E'.ak — A il co n d itio n (he media center*
Mi Mi School — One a d d itio n a l counselor*

tn.
( J h M S - V r im ia m ij: s y s t e m j i i v o c a l m u s t c a n t i l a n d r o o m s *

11*

ih u l il ii ^ and Giounds - Scoich School he renovaied and
F m ^ rjiii A US O iKltncil Jn (Jie
W ake Iv -K iis h n e i rei*ort as am ended*
i o i io iI c I im I in jr c r ih iir ic e u i£h

L o ilii-lc im PJ,ii:HI11^ i n I'n lh ;icl•>|>ri i ! - r r i i- in s r iv e

U\

t i l l s | * ii i j’ i i s e * T l i r H o a r d i i f f i K i n | i i *v n it * a d e q u a t e
h i T i i l m ^ t n i - a n i m i l i h c ta s };s jn t i n 1 i i i m l i ' K
JIH11 li ii K e s n u i r r s K o m i
*- T l i r l r a p p e a l "
In I i r no a d d it io n a l j d r u m i s i i a i i o n n eeded ,n th is
p u i n l * A u v a d d e d n o o i l f m u d i i n n i s t i u i i n n * i< «n v » u i l l
h a v e i n I i r i l e u h w l i U m i ,i y r j r - t n - w u i l u v i s a-'
i t i r s v s le m s p la n n in g l r M i l l s h o im u e e v ide n t*

Si f*n h ScJiiint — O ptim al r iu n H as in the W a k e ly -K u s lin e r*

■>*

in*

L a h — A ir (ip iiiljtjo n the K iv a *

U*
llis tiu t

J n s tiiirtio n -

D efine and implement s c ie n re

ir>.

K i t o s r v d l — K k ’ C l i n . i J u i m i u s l i m i l d ho i e v . m 1 , r d a s M n m m d
in EHaii A in 11io W a f c c k —k u s l i i i e i I c | m i i U

M nsii — S in tii: in s iim iic iit program.

h*
A d iiiim s t i. iliv r “
h im :

Ih iih lln ^ and
P iu n'i mu:

O v n a l l m u ic n I n n r d e v e lo p ! ii- n r . m il e v .i |u .,.-

F ii i n h i m K o m iiu rio n ilJ iji'ii — A i l d j h f i i . i l
n o r t l s h i 1 p v r n l l n s I n ^ l i p u n r i l v m oi l*
(1 )

TJl»‘

A s S l S U llI

Su |*i-i ii t ■i

-11i l l -1tl

rm

rn ip h i'is

1

In %1 i ll IJ f f i

n m l * l*r (ro o d lin m Uio t r s p i u i x i i u l i h nl a d m im s ic i •
in n th e S p e c ia l I 'lln o a h in i p io ^ ia tu and d i i n i i 1 Jus l u l l
e n c itfV h v c n o id n iJ U n j: llt e d i M m l - w i d e
d e v e l o p m e n t an d e v j l u j u o u o l h r i t s *

e m in u ln in

(2 )
A M l f l l C i e n l s u m n e e d s i n h o h m U i ' i e d m i ,i
V r j r —l o —V r J l h j s l s I n l i n o I o . u I h ' I t - i n ' M n m i n ' - , i n
p n m d c J it h u n t o t m o t e i r l r a s r m n r h u M i r i o i n * ! i -•
I P l n i s , h i p r o u d e f n m l ’ ' h i • l i n i i i r i e i n p l o w i i e n t i>]
key s t j f J and i n I n t o e x p e it n n l M i l r h e l p v l u l l iie e d r d .

cm —

tu i il u iu *

]h.
Ctm inds

— P lr v e iila liv e

R oof

k fa in te iijin e

17*

lli^ h S i'liim l - 111■|iiii%c sm u l s iu d ie s pio^ram *
IS ,

A M h it - M« ili,j a d d itio n ,

M»*

u s stated to media f i v e year plan)

V iti.H iiiii <iml C a ir n F ilm j ij o n — A r n u jic u a l r i ia l s , systems
a nil l i ,* 'f iili i 'k' In i r . i i r r l r titiiis e lin i:,
M is ti - Ihind m s lo iitirn t

1

166

.

21
A d m in istra tio n — S ta fr E v a lu a tio n arid D e velopm ent:
a.
Fun ction Recom m endation —
(1 )
A p re -c o n d itio n for developm ent o f th is a t c j
needs be the e s u Id is lim c n t uf d is tflc tw ic le g o a ls ,
(? )
Once the d is tric t p u b are e s ta b lis h e d , it is
recommended that the Board of E d u catio n jp jm iii! an
ad v is o ry rm tim iupp of te a c h e rs , studen ts, re s id e n ts ,
and ad m in is trato rs who w il l lerom m enri s iu n d jid s by
by Vi'hiih (lie s ta ll is to lie e v a lu a te d , and
(3)
A strong a d m in is tra tiv e in -s e r v ic e program be
b e im plem ented to in s u ie q u a lity
p in feasm n al
ev a lu a tio n *
bt
Human Resources R ero nim en daiiou — T h e planning
com m ittee be [covided w ith o u ts id e exp ertise as it
develop s and plans the s ta ll e v a lu a tio n ptogram ,
22*
B u ild in g and Grounds — T h e establishm ent o f an annual
paintin g schedule to j u im lfi^o lo SO"- of w a ll s u rfa c e ,
to
10*; of c e ilin g su rlacc and 20% of e xterio r surface as needed
each year*
23.
Jligh School - S o lve the sm oking problem *
24*
O L M 5 — Stage cu rtain s*

30*

S p e c ia l Ed* — Im p ro v e p io m b n c s fo i it lc i ir ih r a i io n of h a rtd i —
capp ed p ie —s c h o o l c h ild r e n . E * ( u li li ! i li a p re —s c h o o l p ro g ra m ,
37*
S p e c ia l E d , — A c o m p le te c u r r ic u la ! ic v h w o f ih e K —12
program s v u r li g o a ls lo d e v e lo p e n n is r s o f s lu rb fo i Hie g ifte d
c h ild s h o u ld I*? o o d c iL ik e n ,
35,
A d m in is tra tio n — S tu d e n t P e rs o n n e l S e iv ic e s :
j.

F u n c tio n R e c o m m e n d a tio n — T h e D n jid o| E d u ca­
tio n should a p p o in i a n A d v is o it C o m m H tfe ; c o n ­
s is t in g o f s tu d c n ls , r e s id e n ts , te a c h e rs a m i a d m iu is —
ir a io r s : to s u g g e s t:
{ 1 ) A p ro g ra m d e f in it io n
(? ) S ta ff n ee ds in c lu d in g p .ir a - p io le s s H n a S s
( 3 ) F u n c tio n s o f the m u t program
( 4 ) C o o rd in a tio n nee d f o r a to ta l p u p il persm uied
p rogram ,

b*

Hum an R e s o u rc e s R e c o m m e n d a tio n — C o n s n lr r a it n ii
s h o u ld h r g iv e n to a d d in g .id ir im is ir J lio n w h o w i l l
c o o rd in a te j f u l s iijie r v is r th is a re a .

39.

Ef>*
D is iT ic i In s tru c tio n — Use ot a s k ille d s c ie n re co n s u lta n t to
exp ed ite and im plem ent a scien ce r u m c u lu m .

A d m in is tra tio n — M a in t r u a iir c and O g c ijtic jh s :
a.

26.
Abbott — L ig h t control
27*
A d m in is tra tio n — In d iv id u a liz a tio n :
a.

b*

b«

Function Recom m endation A high degree or
in te re s t w as e xh ib ite d in th is area* T h e com m ittee
membeis stress tli.il a great deal uf a tte n tio n he given
th is lu n c lio n in phase tw o or tlie system s planning
m odrl*
Ituluaii Resources Rurum m cm Jaliuii — No a d d itio n a l
ad m in is tra tio n appears to \w needed at th is |*oini*

F iin c tm r t R e c o m m e n d a tio n —
(1)
F ix a t i n g our f a c il it ie s is iie c e s s jr v to b rin g
rhetri up to j r e a s iu ijlilc s L m d a ld *
(21
A tltu p ta le b in d in g am i p la n n e d *>i h c iln J in g lo
ke e p o u t f a c il it ie s up In a re a s o n a b le i p i j l i i v s u m —
d u r d o r e v it a l ,
lE unun R e s o u rc e s K e c o m iu rn d a lo u t — S c ru m s c o n ­
s id e ra tio n s h o u ld he g iv e n to a d d in g ;
( t I A f u l l tim e p n rc lia M iig a g c n l*
121 A d e q u a te f u ll tim e s u p e iv is io n *
(31 C o n s id e ra tio n s h o u ld hi- g iv e n to w i ll in g q m I t ic u t io t is atwl b id d in g to t «>ulstdv s u b - * o u lu c 1
c le a n in g In il e le im in r w h o lh c i or rn*t ih is a p jn o .u h
w o u ld he o b c a p e i, th a n th a t o l iu u io l.iin iiig m il o w n
s t a ll.

40.

2 S.
Personnel — A strong need fn r a remote computer te rm in a l*

B u i l d i n g am ! G ln n u d s - L t l l l e f ilc e n Two lo o m s i Im ol Im re —
lu iv a le d and tem<«!e|ed fn i iw o u p d a t e d < J js v io o m s .

29.
S p ecia l E d * — E s ta b lis h
a l a ll le v e ls *

41 .
E a ly — Re—vam p and u jn ia te la n g u a g e p tn g ia in i E n g lis h
G ram m ar, usage c r r a l iv e w i ll in g , s p e a k in g . di b j l c , o n ,

o v e ra ll

coordination

of

programs

30*
V o c a tio n a l and C a re er - Expanded ••lab ratcn y’ * v o c a tio n a l
s k ills cnu ises* equipm ent and f a c ilit ie s at high school le v e l*
n.

b*
c*

Present classroom space for a ll a reas uf v o c a tio n a l
tra in in g programs lim its the number o f students p er­
m uted to en ro ll in program s*
fte u programs cannot he in itia le d in current fa c ilitie s *
P r e -v n c a tio n a l courses (flili am i l O t b la r e prese n tly
lim ite d *

42.
D o h e rty — T o a b e t r l i l f r i e n t c la s s ro o m e n iir o iu iu o 1'
to a t r o in n d jle d ll r e m it le a rn in g M V le s s u c h us sc I f - m m ia m e d
t r a d it io n a l, open c la s s ro o m , u n ilu —age g m u p iu g , i i i d i i i d t i . i l i / c d
in s tr u c t io n .
43.
OEMS — L ig h t c o n tr o l in c u le ln iiu m ,

31*
Q LM S — Fo reig n language program as rt w as*

44.
S c o tc h — F o n t | i c r r r i i l oT th e o p e ra tin g budge I be e n u iu r k e d
lo r a d i s t r ic t w id e m a in te n a n c e p ro g ra m .

32*
H igh School - Improve the o rien tatio n or students to program s.
Strengthen a c tiv itie s portion of co—ru rn e u la r*

43,
A bbott -

33*
D is tric t In s tru c tio n — More m - i e r v i c c tra in in g
teachers in clu d in g tim e for curriculum d ev elo p m e n t,

46,
R o n seve li - A ll cJasSToom wood flo o is should U rem oved,
c o n c te le in s ta lle d to iccpjited le v e l, w heic nei essurv, and
carp e tin g in h D llc d in a l l c la s s ro o m s ,

turn?

for

C areer ed u catio n *

34.
Personnel — A h a ll—tim e d ire c tm of pupil personnel when
there is G .000 stu d en ts; and lu ll tim e when reaches 12,0 0 0 *

47.
D i s t r i c t I n s in ic u o n — M o le c o n le re ric e s al a l l le v e ls ,

So.

48.
A l h lc l ic — B o v s w t e s llin g H, 7, a n d HUi g ra d e s .

High School — Recommend developm ent ol resource room i«u
D r . G a rv c lin k 's recom m endation* Present lib ia rv t tassioom is
u prune p o s s ib ility *
N 'p ie s a jry equipm ent and lu trututo
e s tim a te d .

49 ,
R o o s e v e lt — T h e lo o t s h o u ld be r e - c o n s tr u e te d and in s u la te d .

167

05*

.

50
Media — Personnel

S p e c ia l ScTVtces
u iJllh v ffnal*

fas sta le d in m edia Jive v t-ji f ilm ) )

51*
D is tric t In stru ctio n — D c lirted and ini|i]etucntccl s o c ia l stu dies
curriculu m *

D i s t r i c t In s m jM tr .n — Mm*. a n d
m id d le s c h o o ls and h i|^ li s c h o o l*
n.l,
V t u j t n u i and C a it'i'1 ~
a s s e s s m e n ts ii| s tu d e n ts
p a d u a lc s *

b e lte r

c h i i u m l. u ^

at

the

E a lv — Program fm j t j d c i n n a llv
ch rld ie n in nrhei a t f j - . as * r J h .
-T3f i •
A < 111 — A c aden.n a llv ijJ e m e il,

y ilie il

<m i Indm ;:

p itie d

]'< i> ip |in t-l — A >< A - M s i. m t in Pci s o n n e l A d i o n i 'H a lu m
] j ; t p | i i l C l a R e la tio n s s h o u ld In C|..|»| n\ i'll*

and

oh.
H m ld i n * , i I C in m ii h — C o u i ic i t A M iu m v ,i o
K r i* ^ p ' l l. u ln a v>\i1er a n d " i - v . n * > f I n
as
t f i \ a it a U r i'n a t ils i , a i b e n u il c *

i

a n d - c u c i i f ih c
a s s ju * f a < - —

hl>.
tJ lc o n — M o le iin liv n U u ll^ a ln iC i ' I i n s i m i t i n i i p

li 'l.
D i s i l U ' l l ii s ln H l im i — M ip ir e m p h a s is mu v. i iH i i: f u i.m n u u j r i n n .
iiu I m li n ^ ^tamrnni.

t> I.
lin lM ln ^ ; siml D io m id s — A l K . ilv i n in is llu i l lln d m r u . n In
|im v id t .1 tl<-i| u.i11- i l ia i n j ^ u anti (‘ M l ( it M .i|d ia R o .n l,
..... .
jin h t c t i l u u i c a n d c u t lm s j i e l t *
( i h ' c i i — r . n i J i t \ ii n | h i i v i ' i n i ' i i i :
Car p d

I p*

M iis iu in iiu i lac t l i i v a n d >(■>!.. ^ i 1

I n i.i I b u il d in g

i «

A n in iiu i h i e r h t v a n d s i n t . e e

di

d ru m

i 1,

U i'lK ’ i l i p h l r o M o d

hear r i m i i f l

I*

h n ie ; is e d li iu l d n e in .iin ie m iiu r
E U o iid I* .A . s V s lr in to a ll p a ils nt s r lu m ],
I h lJ u a v la m p s In .illn v . c ip iip in e h l iis a ^ e ,
S p e e ia ] | / . is l s c ie n c e

1’*

hunk

I jc i l i t \ a n d s l n i . i ^ e .

T h is is Jit s iljp p o il n l p i r s r n l c lf u i ls t n d c ie J o p 4
( in iifiH d tn h M V r c a K ’ i t n l . ii u i i c tiln in ,
P h ils U* rcm lu lm In M ir S ta ll1 i>t M j i 'l i e m m orirl led
V d c a lin J ia l r t ln c a t l t J i i.

IH
t
Green

— t ii il ld ir e
(u r p iiim tio n *

7ll*
L a h — M jin te n a n fc at 4".‘ *
tE s ta h lis li n iJin teiu tH e cm a
li- p ila r lo tJ tio n hasjs Tm |u in t in ^ a c t t . Roof r c m u . slop or
r u tiin m
drainage ol plav^rnn ijd, inst.iJI > u r lj( e m
pld V^HUtlld.)
7t •
D o h etty
s k ills *

s a lr tv

fNohUnns

h r ia iis c

-

T ip iiiiprnve I !■«• oral and w n llc ti iin iii u n ic jru n .

H i^li School — R enral of tw o tf lctvpe iruichmes and a p p ifp tia lt*
sup plies — p n r ilijs c ol tune in O a k h ftd S ilm o ls emripuim lm
1 0 i;iip]i!h and s|Kat la l snininet projiM U:, tl <mld he s e lf—stipporI —
m U '*
Cm npiircr for ptiphli'tn so jvn m *
H jU t n u lc — m am id
out mrpsi i i. io studen ts a te handicapped m not hetiiK pH—
p.m-i! m u u tli and 1 he s tje rm e s at the c o lle y e and rei h u u a ]
let e l,
\ \ v lu v e revjew ed the purpose of such H isttu rtu m a l the lu^h
srhopil le v e l and have concluded i l u i a ptohlein—>o]vjuj;
4 p p t(jje lj is j ri/ft la id e to a svsteius apj ruach*
7:1*
D i s i r jr t lii-stm ciion -► Vst*
a s k ille d s o c ia l studies con­
su ltant lo e x p o d ilt'a n d nnplen enl a so v u J siu d jc s c im ir u liiu j*
74 .
V iit a ljo n and C areer — C areer founsEdinR re —einphasizerl j i
a l l le te lb *
CfpunselinK should riot he lim ile d to school pupprarus*
I ’jiifessio naL jiersonnel a t elem entary sch ools can he
trained i f provide p m d a m c in the areas of career
ed u cation*

75 .
G rre ji — Balhiootn in u im I a < 1 11 1 1 1 s a ic no1 a d e ip ia tr Tor the
numher ol students s e rv e d . F u rth e r, the to ile t la c ilitie s are
Jackiiii; in privacy due lo the ab s en ce of doors*.

A d d o l t j r e s p a c e * I n i us e >i\ s p o i m t l / c p c is o n u e l*
k * I h s ii iii n r ii la I in n u i f j ( i l i l v >111(1 s in ia ^ i1*
J* C l I'J it- InlaJ In II 111Ilij4 ttm i - |iTn*l o l 11iaX11■1111V hv
a i ld i t e t r a in le .ic h n in s p a c e s m <>11 lo o m s ,
in* T c j i l n i liim e c ( it ii u lo i c iiip u n e m c u t.
n« C n iin n tim tv tn o iti f a c il it y and s t m a iu 1*
i». A d d t n j e le l U ,
l>. D u n k i n g 111im i i i n s j ii (M id i in o iii n i li. i] ] v , 'a v .
(|» Ta< l . s i j i | i d is p la y a ie .i m a ll h a llw a y s ,
id .
V o c a tio n .i I a n d C iiii’ i’ t •- C m t tp ii'lin is l v iv C a ie n E d *
C itf~
■K id iu ii d r\(d ((p M ii'h t a l a l l I r v o S jtM*In<c1
:
a w a ir iiC M i*
n i ir n L il in ii* ex pi m a ll o n an d l e p n ir m - c *
>i*

• T o ituprnvp and 'or iriairitain readm e pJtp^uin.

on.
t h n ld n e anil Grounds — Th a t Id .u K to p f u r k n e a r i-js lP<.
CM ]uii'h'd a t J r js t Iw r n iy inotr parkin;; s p a te s lm cn<plin.ecs
and v u lm d i'e ls *
Ih a ik m p plav^iuund aieas he t onsirut u -d.
v. !if-it- le a s ih le , a d ja c e n t 1 0 p jrk m p a i e js separated hv ehain
lin k fe n re and p a le *
T h e s e areas mat serve lm o v c tfln w
parking h*r evening e v e n is .

a*

a*

I.
I.

07*
E X rticilv

la s s ta te d in rni-diii I i v r y t a t p la n )

Ob*
Aidi.itr < 1i'tojK rslml> ptii^rjin
S n ii'c y s , in v e n to rie s a m i n i lc ii 'M
a l le v e ls s s \ th ro n ^ h In ^ li sc lin n ]

l i u i l i l i i j ^ a n d G rou nds — C o n n e c tio n to s a m la iv s ev.ei s is t o jn
n i S m u l i and |>uli]i « u j u - t s v s le iij as soon j s -u c h lac ih t io s
het tune j t j i J j I i k * ,

Ii*

Du*
6G
M eelu — r a c i l m e s

Rcscjuir-e rn-cujis. in c v c iv huililiriK is a

n|

a ll

£].ish

7h.
A h lio it - M c th j ei|u)prnent« (as stated 111 media fiv e year plan)
77*
R o o seve lt — PJunihmp and fix tu re re p a irs * in a ll to ile ts ,
sljituld he CfPiupletvd as ou tlin e d 111 P l- n A * t ta k c lv —Kushner*
78.
D n h eity «- T o im prove learn in g cen icrs in ( lassrornns.
"h ,
D is ln c t h is tiu tlio n — E a tlv id e n tific a tio n o f s k ill d c h r io m e s
in s t i i d c u t a .
80 ,
R o osevelt * - A drjtna^E* system should he u is la lle d j s 0 1 1 1 lined
in P lan A , W a k e lv -K u n h n c r*

I I j ^ I i School
R eading School Wide: S u rt up a c ro m o d a lifii
(m reading texts and suiiidem enis for tw o reading in s in u u rs,
1 R li^ lts li, 1 s o c ia l s ln d ie s , 1 r .j lh - s c ic n c e , to " m i ll jn d
d e v e liifi rradtnj; p iu p rjm a l lim li sch im l le v e l - $ 1 ,0 0 0 . S ta ll
su p p lies Tm ^ t e a r in g in stru cto rs , per pTevimis TeconunciMUiion
- 51,(100.

168

.

82
D oherty — T o im p ro v e scien ce p to g rjm .
63.
S p e c ia l S e rvices — A ll programs should lie r v a liu t e d i t f i m d i c u lly , S ta ff members slioujd lie encm uagcd lo fauna I k e v a lu a te
programs as they did this y e a t in lesource mum and h e a lin g
[irciprams as they did tins y e a r in resou rce rooms and hearing
im paired room s,
84.
D i M m t In stru ctio n — M a te ria ls to im plrm eru s o c ia l stu dies
program*
h :.,
Abbott -

L ib ra ry bon ks. U s stated in media f iv e year p lan )

SG.
OLMS - Add eJecm caJ c ir c u it* in o ffic e com plex*
S7*
Do herty — To improve math curriculum w ith new m a ie n a l and '
or s p e c ia lis ts .
83 ,
D i s m r t In stru ctio n - B e lter co o rd ination of rorrnim niram uis
betw een elem entary and m iddle schnuls
and betw een
m iddle schools and high school ( 6 - 9 ) .
SB.
Scotch — Implem ent the f iv e —ves t protection lor Media
erpjipnieni and softw are m a te ria ls n ec essary In supplement
and clin c h the in stru ctio n al program.

00,
S p ecia l S e rv irp s — C ounselors must d e v c ln p a greater under­
standing o f sp e cial edu cation students and their n eeds.
91*
B u ild in g and Grounds - T o provide b ic y c le racks a l each
school site properly secured w ith a chain lin k fence a re a ,
located for maximum v is u a l s u rv e illa n c e fiom the b u ild in g , and
w here there is a s a f r acc e s s to b ic y c le t r a ils , w alks and
roadw ays*
92*
D is tr ic t In stru ctio n — G re a te i em phasis on hnd iug students
w ith p eiceptual problem s.

9
2
*

Green — A s s is ta n t p rin c ip a l*

94*
S cotch - In s ta ll ad d itio n a l e le c t r ic a l o u tle ts in classroom *
and Media Center Ui promote greater f le x ib ilit y and u tiliz a tio n
o n A V equipm ent and m a tp riu is .

!>5.
H ig h School — StuTdy sh e lv e s lor s c rip ts and hooks in the
drama departm ent.
90.
D is tric t In s tru c tio n - More em phasis on e a tlv id e n tific a tio n
of non—c o lle g e hound s tu d e n ts . A ll II,S , graduates should
have a s a le a b le s k ill*
97 .
D is tr ic t In s tru c tio n — Em phasis on the m etric system in a ll
re la te d sub jects — not o nly in r u t h ,
98,
S]H>cul Services — A funded v o c a tio n a l tra in in g irrugruin should
begin at the MS le v e l.
1)9.
B u ild in g and Grounds - D t j | * r v and lig h t control c u rta in s in
G reen rooms U 2 , 3 , 9 , ID , ltt , 17, K —1; A b b o tt throughout the
b u ild in g ; O LM S 101, 10-1, 107 . 108 . 10G, 1 J 0 , H I * 112, 1 1 4 .
1 15t 2 0 0 , 2 0 2 , 2 0 7 , 209 , 2 1 1 , 2 1 0 to re p la c e w orn out drap e ries
to improve a u d io v is u a l in stru ctio n *

100

.
Media “ Books and s o f t w j i r ,
p lan)

101

(as staled in m edia fiv e year

.

B u ild in g and G inu inU — C u ip c t I In Moms in a ll classroom s,
c n m rin ts , tt'd U ie is lounges and o llic e s in G iven * E a lv , Abbott
O LM S .

102.
S p ecia l S e rvices - A d d itio n a l trjn x p n ria n u ii m Hu* K i l le d
Lake V o c a tio n a l C e ntei fin s p e c ia l ed* students tn the summer
provided
program should be p m vn led ,
103.
O LM S -

L u ig e Hut lot phy s ic a l p i I. ic j tim :,

104.
OLMS - Studv s k i ll * unit tc ip n te d .

io:>.
Vova turn and C a le e r — u tlu iim s h j lm ol V ih -.i 1io ii .i 1 and Career
Ed.;
j.
Ii.
c*
d*
c*

T o coord m ale vocal in n a l't .u eei ed plan n in g ,
T o coordinate v o c a t in iu l/c a if e r cd piogiaiu manage—
m em .
To f a c ilita te a p p lic a tio n , m om to im g and eva lu a tio n
of n irre m vo e atm u a l programs,
To tra in e o n e n l s ta ll in u is iio r t n m jl and guidance
te c lim irp ie s .
T o s t 't v f as a teso u ree person to die needs ut
s tiu lc n ls , s ta ir and the comminute re la tiv e in v o c a ­
tio n a l and caleei r d n c jiin o *

1 M l,
A lh te lje s - Contact (n o ilu M ii—T -H .
107*
OLMS — Learn ing L j I i h im itn te and c-.(n 1

1

c*

in s,
D is lu tl
A btiotl,

1n-une(ii>u — E 'lp u l i /f gvm r.n ilih e s at OLMS and

109.
D is tric t tn stn u turn — Com plete le v ic w ol mil grading system *

110,

A th le tic s - G u ls bas ketb all b —7 - 5 *
111.
V o c a tio n a l am i Cau-t l - A l t e r n a t i v e (work s tin k » M « e i n iu is ,
program io i sennu high school stu d erils.
J*
T o provide oppurtnrnties for slu d cn ls in a le jiu m g
tn v iio h iiic n t oilier than (he school l.ii iJ 1 1y ils e ll*
*J*
E x p m e n c c s lit earn cred it but not h e te s s a iilv w ages*

112,

B u ild in g and Clounds — A r ld ilm n jl blackboards atm u r s o o jn ls
w heie needed in a ll sch o o ls *
113.
Green — M jv g io u n d t a t i l i t i e s ;
ihc need lot w alkw ays and
ud d itio n al b lacktop a re a s to kee p ihc ch ild re n o il ol w et.
muddi' u ic a s *
114.
A th le tic s — C u ts

Boys .IV tennis — high sch ool,

115*
Com m unity E d ucation — A i e a - u n l e ad v is o ry eo u n cil to Ltripmv v
the d e liv e ry ol serv ic e s and tu c rra s v to tte r com m unication rut
an ongoing l u s is , u r iciom m end that an J tt'u —wide advisory
c(>uiic.1 1 he I's ljlr lis lic d w ith the U n a id n l E d ucation pm vulin g
the lni[K.'tiis in i t 's c re a d o ii.
Such a gioup w ould h e lp in the lo llo w jn g go a ls:
a,
h*
c,
d.

Pm m otiug h ettei human r e la tio n s ,
Id e n tify in g resume e s ,
D e v e lo p in g lead ersh ip *
G am c itiz e n in volvem ent in eum m untiy l if e .

169

e«
f,
£•
h.

En courage c itiz e n involvem ent in i>uh]ic- s c h o o l* ,
C o ntinue developm ent of needs itlc m if it a iio n pro­
cess,
H e lp in e va lu atio n o f programs,
E s ta b lis h c o n jttra u o n and cn u K lih atin n .

H (i.
AS!i{>ti — C h oral r is e r s .
117.
C ie e n — C lose school a n n e x . The cn in m itiee fe e ls tri.f- annex
is iio i j good f a c i li t y . T h e y a le to n * r im 'd dhnut the safo iv of
llie ch ild re n an d the fecUnU ol is o la tio n tioJii the m ain b u ild in g ,
US.
H ig h S ch o o l — s t u d f i il lo u n g e : d e v e lo p m e n t til a p o n to n ol
th e e a re tc iJ a lo p ro v id e a m c d in g p l j i c and c j m i j I u s e l>v
s lu d c n ts . m-iHi fu r n itu ie and d iv id e r p a n e ls , c a r p e tin g , b o o k she lves *

I2 R .
OEMS — P ln io s o p liv , s e x u a lity and s e ir-a v v a tc iic s s ,

1.10 ,
G reen — C ontinue to update d ie ed u catio n a l lu a le iia K lime in
use.
T h e re was an assum ption that pio g tessivi- i iu i c i u l s
w ould o m tln n e to he purchased. Should n .a tc jia ls he a future
ptohjem the com m iiiee ItJ t tliis p u o ritv w ntilil (L a n g e ]«<Mtjnns
forw ard,
a.
h,
v.

C o n s is te n t updaurig of present c d iic ju o r a l text and
m aleT ia ls,
lo cic ased lib ra ry tioohs and so ftw are,
R e feren ce lu a ie lla ls Jui each room ceh evelufw dia,
d ic lio n a tie s ).

K l,
D i s p i t i lu s iru e n o ii — More o u ts id e , nr real w orld, s in d u il
i o n tje ts in clu d in g speahets and H e ld trip s .

133.
Media - So H w ^rc. tas s la k ’d in m edia fiv e year plan)

m .
A b b o tt -

re—d o s c ie n c e a re a .

120.
l>i -stri c-1 lu s liiir U o n — H e lte l L o ri/n u ta ) etum iiunicjtinris
bHvvcen g u ile l e w i s in various sc h o n ls , n , e , j j | 7iill g u ile s |

.

121
Cr n :j i , i 11: j I \ D in t j i m n — |n< rv a s c pn g ra in s ;
<i.

h*

t.

I n c ic j s c iri i '.iiipM 'licusivc* s itp p lo i.ifin .il jin t j n e f —
l u l i v i - e iliic a n o n lo i , i l l j l u l i t v a n d l u u ie s t le v e ls *
S Hi h o lfe n n a s t o n Id he d e a lt w n h th ro u g h an
t u e ie js c m v o e jtm n a ] a n d u m c i - c i h n j t m i u l tv p c
p h ' ^ i j i i i ' a s w e ll j s more a l b i u j l ; \ r s l<u s c lio o j jg e
y o u n g s tc is u !m j i c p i r s f r i t l v b r in g lo s l m mu p ie —
s e u t e d n e a t io iij] s y s te m *
B u n g in g in m ure o u ts id e rx |» e iT is e , p j r r i i u l a i k in
th e s o i i . i l j lid h u l l l i n lm a to m l i i J i N w n h e m p h a s is
imi p iev cn la ti w p h y s ic a l a n d m ei.ta J Lea M il.
] ik te a s e le r r r a h o j i in lo js n ic —iv j »- p m g ijiu s , A ls o ,
M iP u r.t) eiiTic In ii nt p t o g u u is vim Ii j s m ild i'o t pop
c o n c e rts .u id a ll J [ ip r e e u lio n g h u ip s n m u g fii lo th e
e o iiu im m iv .

122.

S|K'Clal J in v ic e s — A pilo t program he proposed and develop ed
lrg .it ding |oli o p p o iiu n itie s lor " T v p e A * ’ high s i In - <I si in Units,
T h is should in v o lv e I i * j I business t <umum ilv and he f jn a c lv
m oinio ieil*

12-1.

Media — prngiam . la s slJle d in inedia I l i e yeai p lit il

121

,

C tr e n — T lu 1 hi.ipu co iic cin w .is (oi h erici s u r i i r r iiis in ic lin n
alid media equipm ent, inclu din g j cn n ip re liru *iv e c tlu u lin n a L
T V p jo g u m t u it h idosed c u e iiit c .ip a h iliu e s J*

u>:..

13T.
G reen — T r a ffic
a re a ,

control and s a fe tv ;

create student pickup

t:N,
S p ecia l S e rvices - A fin e a rts c m n se he offered fm non—
i-(j|Jege hound siucleni" as w e ll as ’ ' T v ih - A** studen t* in
high si I h u i J,
IT r,,
D is U ir i lu s tio c lio ii — lv j|rto \e H .S . cm iisc
h c lte l eucof::pa*-s M ih ie c i' Lcjug (alig h t,

d e x n p tio n s

in

M li,
High Sc Load — M in IH v p icsciit northc.jsi jkk ! as a m atlu 'm ities
o llO c , s jiu il.il lo llie so c ial studies pm l,
M m lilv V jc .ilt'ii
m alliem .itics o ttir e j ' a siuah-nt a c tiv itM -s -s im lc n i gn\ ernruenl
e e in e i*

117,
H u iliP ug ant! (Hounds - Th a t ex is n n g l i l j i k n 'p j i e j s he
in>pc»1cd l e g u ljt lv and le s iir l.k tog In* dom 1 v.tn-n earJv
ot L rc.ih—ttiO'iigh or m j i Ling is evo len l m older to ic ia iu
iiijxim um v j lu e v, illi iiiiiiimiiN j c m K I j i mg c irs l,
MS,

l ) | s [ | i c i I n s iiiic u o n — G r c j lc i us e c l I n lu n lr c t s | n r liir t ln g tJic
e ld c tlv ,
td ft,
GLMS - M edia ( e iilc f eiitiipnu'Ht, (as slated in media f i ' c >eal
p la n I
14(1,
Elooscvell - B L ic f.li’ pj'i'd [M iking s p a te for lu e n iv J<hlnn«t..i I
c a rs .
M l*
A h hoii — m o l,

A hholt — Supplem ental le x is .
KG,
H ig h School — C h ild deveJopineni m itst’tv :
r n n w 'is m n nl
p iesvn l semen Jiod in Jiulnni p L iv g io u u d a n a ioi c h ild d r w f n p mcnl nutserv c la s s e s — llie ro u v m s m n would itiv o lu * a low
lu r n e t , possibly even a playground i v | r lenee w h ich m .iM he
th siikin lled and l e —ejccted o iils id r , il n e / c - s . m *

127.

C oiiiiin iiiiiy E d iH a U o ii - f a c i l i t i e s : C o ntinued htuad use <d
school f j r i h n c s * A d d itio n a l l e m 'ji m im ] l a v i l i i i r * needed a i r
le n tils c n u lls , l u s c t u ll rilJtnnm ls, and more pi,ic t ie r lo n ih jIJ
and soccer H e ld s ;
also nuidnni h j s U ' t l u l l c o n iis .
AJx>,
id e n tify an d u u l i / e other f j t i l n i e s mil u c e rs s a n lv school
owned lor program o lje iiu g s .
KB,
D is tr ic t In stru ctio n — Reduce rle m c n ia rv report r a id s to tw o j
y ea r and in crease p jre n l 'teach er c o n feren ces.

M 3*
D is tric t Iris iiu t lion — KirLalv s ib lin g s ariioug co u n selors,
Md*
Ealv — r ijv g itH in d I'u iiip n ien l,
M 4,
Spet uJ la l* - " T y p e A " fie ld H ips should he a llo w e d w ithout
Ll .1 1i i 11 1 \ In spot id) f d iiiJ d o u I j c i l l l i *
m :>*
Mi di i — C lo se d t it c m i T . V . ia s i»Uted in media U\t> yeat p la in

M h,
B u ild in g and Gm nnds — III a ll school Im ifd m g s , i n s t jli
einergeiKV lig liis lo he usfd if curienr goes off w h iU people
are as s c m h le d . These shim ld tae U is ia lle d neat t:upM i iiitu lor
in t P i- s e r i ii u i s , g v ju n js iu ii^ , c a fe te li.is , iiid ilo iiu m s , c*'im:iu—
in ly rooms, fnniin and p L u e s of tuapx a s s e m lilv .

170

H7.
H .S . - T h e student radio s ta tio n has s p e c ia l needs o m anti
abo ve IJie le v e l o f other E n g lish cou rs es and should he funded
as a th le tic s i s .
Fun din g a t this le v e l w ould ena b le us to
m aintain a new s w ire te le ty p e *
148 .
B u ild in g and Grounds - In the h ig h s c h o o l, con tinue to re p la c e
fire system sp rin kler heads w ill) G u n n e l T y p e Model F 9 2 0 w ith
autom atic w ater shu t o ft,

143.
U .S . - C o nference secondary—debate and In re n s ic s should be
funded as a th le tic s is , since it b a s ic a lly o p e ra les as a
separate e n tity and cannot be supported in Uie regular d ep art­
ment budget,
150.
B u ild in g and Grounds - In s ta ll a
tra ffic s ig n a l at Orchard
Lake Road to improve safety lor c h ild ic n cro ss in g Orchard
L ake ltd , to O LM S .
151*
B u ild in g and Grounds - A t G re en , in s ta ll b la c k to p w a lk from
b u ild in g to Savoie Court and extend w alk to W alnut Lake ftd .
I& S .
S p ecia l E d , — A tten d in g s e le c ie d m eetings and con feren ces to
g a in new m ethods and info rm ation to be incorporated into out
S p ecia l E d , program,
151.
Scotch — Grade and reseed North playground a re a ,
Area
p rese n tly has sharp steps and s teep h a n k .
T w o lia s i't u ll
diam onds lo cated in th is area cannoi be u tiliz e d because of
rough te rra in ,
154,
O LM S — S p e c ia l program fur e x c e p tio n a l a c h ie v e rs ,
15 5,
A b bott -

F ie ld trip s*

150 ,
A h lm it — S o c ia l studies equ ipm ent,
157,
A bbott — S c ien c e equipm ent,
158*
1LS. - L ik e a th le tic s , instru m ental r m m i has perform ance
needs and o b lig atio n s run ty p ic a l or o ther a ie a s . I recommend
a general perform ance budget over and abnvc r e g n lj; funding*
15?),
B u ild in g and Grounds — P rovide a d d itio n a l s e c u iity M urage at
llie h ig h school for s u p p lie s , a t h le tic equ ipm ent, band in s tru ­
ments „ au d io v is u a l equipm ent* re c e iv in g area equipm ent,
rep air a r e a , c ic ,
ICO,
H .S . — L ik e a t h le tic s , vo c a l m usic h as [lerfntiuaiice needs jn d
o b lig a tio n s not ty p ic a l o f cither a re a s , 1 rccuiiiiiiend a s p e c u l
perform ance budget o ve r and above reg ular lurtding,
151,
S o c i a l E d , - T h e fo llo w in g resources should be em ploycf! m
the teaching of " T y p e A " c h ild re n :
a*
b.
c.

C om putet w ith tim e sharing te rm in a l,
Student te a c h e rs ,
H igh School students (s c re e n e d ),

162.
Scotch — R E —vam p playground a re a * R e lo c a te old equ ipm ent.
Purchase new equipm ent. R eseed g ra s s . P la in shrubs and
tre e s ,
163*
O LM S — C a reer ed u catio n .

164.
5 [te r ia | E d * — A u d io v isu al equ ipm ent,
165*
H .S . — D ram atics has r e t u r n program needs over and above
the le v e l ol oilier En glish cm tiM 'h anil should be funded as
a th le tic s is ,

1GG.
S c o tc h — U p d jto a n il p u rc h a s e le x lb o o k s * m aps, g lo b e s j m l
o d ic r s u p p lc u ie n J u ry m j l e i u l s n e c i’ s s j i v in in ip lr m c n i (he K —5
S o cial S tu d ie s program w h en li n u l i / e d and a d o p te d * bv the
d is tr ic t ,
167 ,
B u ild in g and Grounds - Gym M urage m G jc r n , E a lv and SroU-h
lo provide for table and chan s in ijg e .
IB S .
S p e e u ] E d . — A lo lh iw —up svslem ou each " T v p c A " s liid cu l
to age 25*

io n .
S o c ia l E d , — P h y s ic a l E d u catio n an d o th rt piograms be tmnle
a v a ila b le to I lie L . D . K ludenls; c,g» tl.n iip o lin r a v a ila b le in
the gvm* e tc .
170.
l l. S . — T h e yearbook has s | h *< i j I needs nvci am i abo ve I hose
o f other E n g lish cou rses* I recommend a modest budget to
suppnri some sup ply needs and c o n lc ir iic e iiei'ip*.
171 .
Scotch — U p iL ie and purchase equipm ent ai d suppoii m ateria K
necessary to im plem ent tin* K —5 P h y s ic a l E d ic u liin i cm —
tlCulum that lias I h' c ii adopted In llie D is liie t *
172 .
E a lv — In crease and improve gvm su p p lies ami

ni*

173.
Scotch — D e s ig n and d evelop fni im p lem entatio n a Language
A rts cu riicn lu iji em b u c in g die K - 5 pm gram ,
174.
A th le tic s — Ih 'V s «1, V , Soccer*
17 5 .
O LM S — Equity betw een Irnvs am i g ills s p o ils ,
17b,
S n itc h — S iuvev v jr io iis p u ig ijm s . tcxilm o ks mot s iip |itc jm iilaTV m aterials n e r e s s jiv loi a co m dm atod and e h in p io lie h s iie
K —5 Scioni e program,
177,
)|.S» — T h e school n e u s |L i|H i lias s p e c ia l needs over and
and abo ve those ol oilier E n g lish c o u rs e s . 1 ret oiinnpud a
a inodesl builgel 0* supjHifi some siipjdv needs jlih n iig h the
|M|*er should e s s e n lia lli be > e |l—s iip p n iiin g .
178.
E a lv — L iv in g cdm a lin ii: * h ih h c ii should h o i tin: niipnrlH tiilv
to ex p e rie n c e as u u m Hungs I irs i baud Js { fis s ild e . In creased
lutldm g l f » l i r i d trills Was one s u g g e s t i o n , A nuthcl was the
p o s s ib ility o| extended tom s ( i . e . W tlliJiHshulg< W ashington,
D . C . , In dian reservations j lm t b ilib e u to see and pail it i ju i c
III some riT Ibe a c t iv it ie s they ie .n l jh o u t*
J7IJ,
S cotch — D esig n am i im plem ent a < n u id iiu lc d and com­
prehensive curriculu m e iu b u e in g Llie M c lin S\si<:m , l'p d .ile
and purchase su p glririciiL i] lu a te c u ls neeessaiX lo siipiK.il Ibe
Houghton—M illlm m athem atics textbook s e rie s ,
l&O.
S cotch — C o lH lbiie llife e le im n L itv reading o l i | i c m c as
e s ta b lis h e d bv the B upeim tcndi i.t and Ib u id id l.dm a lio n
w ith an annual a lln c a t on ol liv e hundied d o llo is 11 n suppnii
m a te r ia ls .

171

e.

.

181
B u ild in g and Grounds doors a t O LM S ,

R e p air or re p la c e in te rio r corridor
f.
g.

182.
S p e c ia l E d . — S p e c ia l E d ucation s ta ff members have expressed
a need for released tim e fo r d ep artm ental m eetin gs (a t le a s t
tw ic e a sem ester)*
183,
B u ild in g and Grounds — In s ta ll b u lle tin boards d e le te d from
o rig in a l plans a t the high sch o o l.
184,
B u ild in g and Grounds — Com plete hard surface w alks to c a s t
and w est side of D o h e rty ,
185,
B u ild in g and Grounds — R educe designed c a p a c ity to provide
one room for a r t, one room for m usic, one loom fo r community
and vo lu n teer u s e , and rooms fo r s p e c ia l education p u p ils .

SjK-'CiuI E d . — L ea rn in g
fo llo w in g :
a . R ead in g m achines,
b . T y p e w rite ! re p a irs .

d is a b ilitie s

classroom

needs

the

198.
O LM S - V is u a l com m unication,
199.
O LM S - Science la b equipm ent*

£00 .
B u ild in g and grounds - Seal rubberized tra ck t n e ite n d us u s e ­
fu l life a t the high sch ool,

£01*
H .S . — O ne L e d e r c tlo o r loom * P re s e n tly , advanced fibers is
lim ite d to three or four stu d en ts, due to the lim ite d equipm ent*

B u ild in g and Gtounds a t the high sch o o l.

R e p la c e d eterio rate d concrete curbs

203,
E a ly — Im prove b e ll system ,

£04,

187 .
E a ly - C o n stru ct a storage morn,

H .S . — M odify the north pod as an In s tru c tio n a l m aterials and
production c e n te r.

188.
U .S . — O ne more b u lle tin boaid in vo c al m usic m o m . D u p lic a te
of one a lre a d y th e r e . Many things could be d is p la y e d .

189,
11.5, — D e v e lo p lo cker mom f a c ilitie s to expand lo ckers and
sto rag e for v a rs ity and intram ural spo rts, both boys and g ir ls ,
190,
S o c i a l E d . - In crease m a te ria ls luidgct for Resource Rooms to
a more r e a lis tic fig u re .

205.
B u ild in g and Grounds — R esu rfa ce or re p la c e deterio rate d con­
c rete in from of the high sch o o l.

2DG*
B u ild in g and Grounds — R esurface o rig in a l s ix tennis courts a t
the IL S .

207.
B u ild in g and Grounds — Improve the b a s e b a ll fie ld a t D o h e tiy .

2 oa.

191,
E a ly - In s ta ll a P .A . system *

.

IL S . — In s ta ll a s ig n lioard near Orchard L a k e for b u lle tin
postings and com ing e v e n ts .

B u ild in g and Grounds — T h a t m aintenance of the s ite s in clu de
top d re s s in g grass areas w ith sandy loam top s o il w here needed,
f e r tiliz in g , r e - s c c d in g , lim ite d use of w eed k ille r and regular
m ow ing. M ain ten ance o f ball diam onds require a d d itio n of snil
that w il l compact on in fie ld s and reg u lar le v e lin g *

209,

193.
B u ild in g and Grounds - B la c k to p a ll con necting parking areas
and drivew a ys and expand lo r d surface parking area a t w est end
o f Abbott M id d le S c h o o l.
104 .
M .S . — D e velo p m en t o f gated and lo c k a b le parking lot a re a ,

19b.
E a ly
s ite ,

197 .
O LM S — W restling — in te r—s c h o la s tic .

£02.

tee*

102

Farm t ile or p erforated drain pipe in natu ral s w ale s
a lo n g south fe n c e , to w e t a re a s , and g e n e ra lly a
system o f d ra in a g e . T i le w ill flo w in to tru nk line
d ra in s .
C a tch basin to con n ect new t ile w ith e x is tin g t ile ,
C o n n e c t roof drains to the underground trunk lin e
d rain ag e sys tem .

- In s ta ll lig h ts at en irance to d riv e w a y .
(re fe r to p n o n ty # 6 1 )

L an d scap e

190,
B u ild in g and Grounds — C o nstru ct a n adequate s ite drainage
system to make O LM S ground a c c e s s ib le during early spring and
p ro tect the b u ild in g from w ate r dam age and flo o d in g . In s ta ll
the fo llo w in g :
a . C a tch b a s in a l county ro ad c u lv e rt,
b* C atch basin a t low area sou theast of b u ild in g ,
c . C atch b a s in a t low area e a s t o f b u ild in g ,
d . Concrete t il e to sou thw est of b u ild in g .

B u ild in g and Grounds — Open space and re c re a tio n a l d e v e lo p ­
m en t.
P rio ritie s need to be develo p ed w ith oih er u n its of
governm ent*

210.
IL S . — A d d itio n of outdoor b a s k e tb a ll and v o lle y b a ll co u rts.
U sed by both c la s s e s and com m unity, W ill h e lp re lie v e s itu a ­
tion o f Linsiipervised p layers in the qym a fte r sch o o l.

211.
IL S , - A d d itio n a l parking lot a r e a , b lic k to p p e d and s u ita b le for
outdoor b a s k e tb a ll an d other games on south s id e of b u ild in g .

212,
IL S , — E n c lo s u ie of cage in g i r ls 1 lo cker room , N eeded to s to ic
equipm ent Tor g ir ls ’ a th le tic team s,

2 13 ,
H .S . - A d d itio n a l te a m -ty p e lo ckers fur g ir ls '
G irls * a th le tic program is exp an d in g .

lo cker room.

172

,

214
H*S* — Srtn'Ol w id e career day nr other ap p ro p riate |irn^rani. A ll
caT fM ^ represented w ith a ll tlc iu rlm e n is re la te d to s u c h , L o n g ­
time planning throughout the c c lio a !,
215*
HJS. — Need In have grad students return (n ro tm s i'l under—
grads*
21G.
13.5 . - Im prove in te rp re tatio n s of le s lin g to students and parents
as part of a ro m ju ch eu M ve testin g sys tem , Re suie that test
resu lts he provided a w l in te rp re ted in paren ts, stu d o ijis and
tea c h e rs ,
217,
H .S * — A com m itm ent to some kind of v u c a U n ru l le s lin g * T o be
determ ined a fte r the resu lts o f p ilo t study are com pleted. There
has been a J o n g -fe lt and c x p its s e d need o f the counselor!! as
an a id in more adequate caree r p ljn n m g w o ik ,
216*
11.5, - In te re st te s tin g , a ll students w jih m a grade le v e l,
perhaps in ron|tinc 1ion w ith (he s o c ia l studies departm ent,
P erh aps to be view e d as a necessary too), should our e m jiia s is
be tjn career education*

21 n.
JJ,S, - Im prove language arts program s, (B a s ic grammar. w ritin g
s k ills and s p e llin g ),
220+
H .S , — fe n c e d a re a , ap p ro xim ately 100 foot r u d e , gates a p p ro xim ately 8 7 0 0 * Does not in c lu d e playground equipm ent,
e tc . E s tim ate d 51000+ (Hom e e c o n o m ics)

221

.

H .S . - Curbing should he in s ta lle d tn ImtJi tu rn -a ru u m ! couils
and in the t u ik w g lo t's north s id e , to protcM g rass ed areas al
the atm'.li end ol the fo o tb a ll s u d im u , V is itin g bus p ickup spot
ud|a<•frit to gym for 1u-ci buses*
22

1*

,

230
H .S , — I economy eve m odel tiT'-VIO—0 2 ; 1 m edian s e c tio n ol
head 0 7 0 3 7 —f l j ; 1 economy Jie.irl model (> 7 9 4 3 -0 2 ; 1 economy
skin model iJiim licrus) G7n4r>-rt2*
231 +
U .S . — 1 sm isjp h o n e, filie lg h is s K ing m u le! or e q u iv a le n t.
232.
U .S . — I ir a im s t o r equipment . n u l iv e r e q iiiia le n t In it A
e le c irim ic s 0 0 7 0 at 2 5 0 for advaneed e le c tro n ic '' Jjb+
233.
U .S . — R e lo c a tio n o l v .a ll''
room *.

K

III s cience urea in provide more

234.
U .S . — Request perm ission for m .iie ri.ils pi tim id sm all engine
storage under present power Cib tab le*.,
+
U .S . — Mure la Ii looms in scien ce a re a .

2 3 5

£30,
U .S . — D e v e lo p v e rtic a l am i h o r i/o n u l la rig iu u slutaue
a u d ito riu m M a g e urea and .... .
u lin n id lu h lin g w .itls
a l l o w access d o o r s ,

m
in

237,
B o v s ' w re stlin g ti—7—6 grades.
236+
C o nta ct fo o tb all 7 —S grades*
232+
C o m p leie tw o ( 2 ) b as e b a ll. one M ) '. o f ih j jj diam onds al high
school s u e . iT ta in benches—ih ig o iils , le m m g , dram a gel
240.
pu rch ase 3 4 *x31 * w re s tlin g irui tin c u s iin g
s c h o o l,

program at high

H .S . — Seven 0 x 2 m ats e q u ivalen t to N isse n wSOfl ut 2+83 'sq . f t . ,
241.
R e p a ir and ic * u r fa r e pn-M-iH leiiriis eonris and m im ing tra ck.
R e la te d lo a b o v t is looitsilJ h e ld d ra in a g e ,

81200.
223 +

U.S. — One desk and chair teach e r.
student teach e rs , e t c .

For a d d itio n a l member,
242.
M idd le sdioiiJ g ir ls ' h a s k fih a U program ,

224.

U .S . - liamni cam era, sev e ra l copy s ta n d s , dark m om * P h o to ­
graphy provides an e x r e llc n i leach in g to o l.
For teachers to
d e v e lo p m a te ria ls for class use and have students develop
(Hms Tela ting to various c la s s e s *
225,
U .S . — Colorado T im e System s G -la n e e le c tro n ic tim e r. Assure
fa irn e s s lo a ll c o m p c tito ra .
We have com peted a t | 0 aw ay
m eets, a ll schools had e le c tro n ic equ ipm ent, in clu din g sun.c
C la s s B sc h o o ls ,
22G ,

U .S . - 1 n e w -IB M e x e c u tiv e typ ew riter for c o u n s e lin g , to fc p J a c e
old m achine now l*?ing u se d .
227,
H .S . — R e p la c e stools in both w o odsh opand d raftin g room s,
22B+
U .S . - 4 G " x 2 0 M tra cin g box e q u iv a le n t to M a c M illa n A rts and
C la f ts , In c , 2 8 5 3 5 0 ,
229.
ll+S. - F t o s t - f r e e 16 cub ic foot re frig e ra to r e q u ivalen t to Scars m odel c s t , (Hom e E c onom ic s)

to p fre e z e r,

243.
Purchase s ix (h i I sjs ln tlij|J |<Hcs cn m plele w iiti h ackU iards
and nm s to tn1 itis u ille d mi north ju r k n ig lo t, tluis providing
im m ediate outdoor courts lot f a l l , spring arid summer use at high
school s ite ,
244.
M idd le school g ir ls ' lu s k e ib a ll program .
2 45 .
A th le tic slnragc f a c i lit ie s ,
E i k I u m 1 e x 'c n n t a reas betw een
north entrances to high s c I ii h i ] b u ild in g . M eretv enclosu re nr
e x is tin g s p a c e , one c x tr n o r w a ll and one irtle u o r w a ll, would
provide a c r itic a l n e rd *
£46.
Purchase a d d itio n a l a th le tic lockers fur g u ts — high sch ool*
£47.
G ir ls -B o y s Jun ior V a rs ity tennis team * ( £ - 1 0 g rades)
£48+
Boys Junior V a rs ity soccer program, ( 9 - 1 0 g rades)

173

NEEDS VALIDATION FOLLOW-UP STATUS, 1977
"A" P rio ritie s
MAINTENANCE, BUILDING AND SITES
8.

Ealy— A ir condition the media center.

10.

OLMS— V e n tila tin g system in vocal music and band rooms.

61.

Building and Grounds—At Ealy reconstruct the driveway to provide
adequate drainage a t e x it to Maple Road. Flood lig h t entrance
and e x it fo r sa fety.

69.

Building and Grounds—That blacktop parking areas be expanded a t
le a s t twenty more parking spaces fo r employees and volunteers.
Blacktop playground areas be constructed where fe a s ib le , adjacent
to parking areas separated by chain lin k fence and gate. These
areas may serve fo r overflow parking fo r evening events.

133.

Green—T r a ffic control and sa fe ty : create student pickup area,

193.

Building and Grounds— Blacktop a ll connecting parking areas and
driveways and expand hard-surface parking area a t west end of
Abbott Middle School.

194.

H.S.--Development o f gated and lockable p a rk in g -lo t area.

195.

Ealy— In s ta ll lig h ts a t entrance to driveway.
(Refer to p r io r it y #61.)

196.

Building and Grounds— Construct an adequate site-d rain ag e system
to make OLMS ground accessible during e a rly spring and protect the
building from water damage and flo od ing. In s ta ll the follow ing:
a. Catch basin a t county road c u lv e rt.
b. Catch basin a t low area southeast o f b u ild in g .
c. Catch basin a t low area east o f b u ild in g .
d. Concrete t i l e to southwest o f b u ild in g .
e. Farm t i l e or perforated drain pipe in natural swales along
south fence, to wet areas, and generally a system o f drainage.
T ile w ill flow in to trunk lin e drains.
f . Catch basin to connect new t i l e with e x is tin g t i l e .
g. Connect roof drains to the underground trunk lin e drainage
system.

202.

Replace deterio rated concrete curbs a t the high school.

205.

Building and Grounds— Resurface or replace deteriorated concrete
in fro n t o f the high school.

Landscape s it e .

174

153.

Scotch— Grade and reseed North playground area. Area presently
has sharp steps and steep banks. Two baseball diamonds located
in th is area cannot be u tiliz e d because o f rough te r r a in .

200.

Seal rubberized track to extend it s useful l i f e a t the high school,

206.

Resurface o rig in a l six tennis courts a t the high school.

207.

Improve the baseball f ie ld a t Doherty.

208.

Building and Grounds--That maintenance of the s ite s include topdressing grass areas with sandy loam top so il where needed, f e r ­
t i l i z i n g , reseeding, lim ite d use o f weed k i l l e r , and regular mowing.
Maintenance of b a ll diamonds requires addition o f so il th at w ill
compact on in fie ld s and regular le v e lin g .

209.

Building and Grounds--Open space and recreational development.
P r io r itie s need to be developed with other units o f government.

210.

H .S .--A d d itio n o f outdoor basketball and v o lle y b a ll courts. Used
by both classes and community. W ill help re lie v e s itu a tio n of
unsupervised players in the gym a fte r school.

211.

H .S ,--A d d itio n a l p a rk in g -lo t area, blacktopped and su itab le fo r
outdoor basketball and other games on south side o f b u ild in g .

241.

Repair and resurface present tennis courts and running tra c k .
Related to above is f o o tb a ll- fie ld drainage.

64.

Green—Building safety problems because o f a ll-g la s s construction.

94.

Scotch— In s ta ll additional e le c tric a l o u tlets in classrooms and
Media Center to promote greater f l e x i b i l i t y and u t iliz a t io n o f AV
equipment and m aterials.

108.

D is t r ic t In s tru c tio n -E q u a liz e gym f a c i l i t i e s a t OLMS and Abbott.

116.

Abbott—Choral ris e rs .

146.

Building and Grounds— In a ll school b u ild in g s, in s ta ll emergency
lig h ts to be used i f current goes o f f w hile people are assembled.
These should be in s ta lle d near major co rrid o r in te rs e c tio n s ,
gymnasiums, c a fe te ria s , auditorium s, conmiunity rooms, forum, and
places o f major assembly.

153.

Scotch— Grade and reseed North playground area. Area presently
has sharp steps and steep bank. Two baseball diamonds located
in th is area cannot be u tiliz e d because o f rough te r r a in .

18.

Abbott—Media addition (as stated in media fiv e -y e a r p la n ).

175

40.

Building and G rou nds--L ittle Green two-room school be renovated
and remodeled fo r two updated classrooms.

62.

G re e n --F a c ility improvement:
a. Carpet to ta l building
b. Music room f a c i l i t y and storage
c. A rt room f a c i l i t y and storage
d. B etter heat control
e. Better lig h t control
f.
Increased building maintenance
g. Extend P.A. system to a ll parts of school
h. Hallway ramps to allow equipment usage
i.
Specialized science room f a c i l i t y and storage
j . Add o ffic e spaces fo r use by specialized personnel

176

PRIORITIZED
MAINTENANCE, BUILDING AND SITES
We strongly urge the immediate catch-up maintenance, so th a t preventive
maintenance can be implemented on an ongoing basis. With the passing
o f the next mi 11 age, we fe el these items w ill be taken care o f; however,
our recommendation as to the "A" P r io r ity L is t is as follow s:
8
10
61
69
133
193
194
195
196
202
205
153
200
206
207
208
209
210
211
241
64
94
99
108
116
146
153
18
40
62
91

16
22
26
43
44
54
58
70
75
86
112
118
136
148
159
167
183
184
185
187
189
192
203
204
212
123
220
221
236
245

177

COUNSELING
We recommend th a t in order to re lie v e the counselors of menial tasks,
th a t a system o f automated student records be in s ta lle d .
P r io r ity

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

28
216
217
218
19/63/74
32
214
72

CO-CURRICULAR
Our p r io r it ie s are as fo llo w s , re fe rrin g to the "A" P r io r ity L is t:
147
106
114
240
225
149
158
160
165
170/177

ADMINISTRATION AND COMMUNICATIONS
Recommendation per sub-committee reports (attach ed ):
We fe el a major e f fo r t needs to be put in to e ffe c t in the f ie ld
o f community communication.

178

PERSONNEL
P r io r itie s are as fo llo w s, using "A" P r io r ity L is t:
21
15
47
39B
105
25
33

MEDIA
We recommend a ll media equipment and f a c i l i t i e s be brought up to the
same standards throughout the d i s t r ic t .
P rio rity

1
2
3
4
5

8
50
66
89/100
148

COMMUNITY EDUCATION
See "A" P r io r ity L is t.
115

CAREER EDUCATION
This area covers several d iffe r e n t categories w ith in our o u tlin e and
has been therefore placed w ithin overlapping areas. The need fo r
preparation in to the "working w orld," e ith e r d ire c tly a fte r high school
or college graduation, should not be dismissed or ignored nor dropped.

179

CURRICULUM
Recommendation:
The communication between our schools' programs, d is tric tw id e ,
needs to be more closely co rrela ted .
Araripmir
-------------P rio rity I

P rio rity I I

P r io r ity I I I

P r io r ity IV

P r io r ity V

P r io r ity VI

P r io r ity V II

Language Arts
60
41
81
219
125
Science
14
199
119
230
124
166
Social Studies
17/51
84
Metrics
97
179
Grading System
109
128
Math
87
Gym Equipment
& Supplies
172

Technical
(V ocational)

Special Services
(Includes G ifte d )

30
11
72

7
152
154
161
164
122
134

180

TO:

Five-Year Planning Board

FROM:

Task Force on the Adm inistration

Proposal:

In order to restore and perpetuate harmony among the

parents, s t a f f , and adm inistration o f the West Bloomfield School
D is t r ic t , the Task Force on the Adm inistration emphatically recom­
mends the reinstatem ent o f a Communications D ire c to r, e ith e r on a
f u ll-tim e , p a rt-tim e , or consulting basis.
We fu rth e r suggest th a t the Adm inistration (Central and Building) and
the Board o f Education be afforded the opportunity to p a rtic ip a te in
an in -s e rv ic e program designed to in s tru c t and counsel in the enhance­
ment o f communication s k ills .

181

February 4 , 1978

To:

The 5-Year Planning Committee

From:

The Communications Committee
Chairwoman: Mrs. T e rri S p in e lli

Subject:

Committee recommendation

We, as a committee, have determined th a t a communications problem
exists in a ll the various aspects of the West Bloomfield educational
community.
Including:

The
The
The
The
The
The
The
The

Board o f Education
Teaching S ta ff
Support S ta ff
Adm inistration S ta ff
Parents
Tax Payers
Students
Media

Therefore, our recommendation is the creation o f a Communications
O ffic e , which w ill provide services in clu d in g , but not lim ite d to ,
the follow ing:
Liaison to the p u b lic, media, and s t a f f
A v a ila b ility to the public to provide information
P u b lic ity about the existence of the o ffic e and
the services i t can provide.

182

Long-Range Planning, Task Force
on Curriculum and S ta ff

"State o f the D is tr ic t"

Problem Statements o f
October, 1977

Responses to
Reviewed Outcomes
and
Recommendations

183

I.

Reading and Math Evaluation and Standards
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.

West Bloomfield participates in the "State of Michigan Assess­
ment Program."
West Bloomfield p articip ates in the "State Minimal Performance
Objectives."
D is t r ic t testin g program was revised 1976-77 as a "Mission"
go al.
73% go to college.
Our students are above average in a ll areas.

Recommendations:
A.

B.
C.
D.
II.

Recommend b e tte r evaluation of testing results to id e n tify
the needs of well-behaved students who perform poorly (the
student who doesn't "act up" in class, who gets l i t t l e
a t t e n t io n ) .
Id e n tifie d students should not be placed in the general
(la rg e r size) classrooms, as they need special a tte n tio n .
Suggested th at reading consultants at middle and high
school levels work with no more than f iv e students a t a
time.
Elementary-level volunteer tutors need b e tte r inservice
tra in in g and follow up.

Gifted Students
A.
B.

An advisory committee is
fo r the g ifte d students.
$21,000 the d i s t r i c t has
matching federal funds.

presently designing the Magnet Program
earmarked, and have applied for

Concerns:
While the committee recognizes and supports the need fo r pro­
grams fo r the g ifte d students and is aware of the proposed
d i s t r i c t plan fo r a magnet school fo r the accelerated elemen­
ta ry students, they would not want currently operating school
d i s t r i c t programs to s u ffe r or be short-changed. I t was f e l t
th a t teacher s h ifts resu ltin g in increased loads fo r teachers
in the neighborhood elementary schools or any "cutting back" of
f a c i l i t i e s or equipment elsewhere in order to make the new pro­
gram operational would not be desirable or acceptable.
III.

Class Size and Individual Attention
A.
B.

Review of studies say m ajority o f students are not affected
by class size.
Individual atten tio n of students decreases as size increases,
according to some studies.

184

Recommendations:
A cla ss -size study in elementary, middle, and high school,
with the emphasis on individual a tte n tio n of students.
Must be cleared through the:
Union
Administration
IV-C fin an cial support
IV.

Counseling
A.
B.

Administrators, teachers, students, and parents agree on the
main function of counselors.
19 d i s t r ic t s surveyed.
Low— 244
High— 500
Average— 344
West Bloomfield High School
1969— 331
1972— 362
1977— 392

Recommendations:
A.
B.
C.
V.

School d i s t r i c t subsidizing the counselors fo r furthering
th e ir education in s p e c ia lis t counseling areas: Career
Education, Vocational Education, Special Education.
I f counselors were lim ited to 300 students, they would
have about 1 hour/year/student.
We support the Counseling Missions recommendations.

Need of Curriculum In te g ra tio n , An A rticu late d Program
A.

This has been turned over to the Career Education Mission
Commi t t e e .
This has been done because Career Education when t o t a l l y imple­
mented would include an a r tic u la te d integrated program.

Recommendations:
A.
B.
C.

Supporting the Career Education summer proposed in service program.
Supporting the Educational Community Survey o f busi­
nesses, industries and services.
Recommend a separate administrator to be responsible fo r
career education, vocational education, and special
education.

185

V I.

Media
A.

B.

No waste as aVj_ items must be j u s t i f i e d before being pur­
chased.
1. Instructor
2. Administrators
3. Media s t a f f
Money not always a v aila b le fo r re p a ir.

Recommendations:
Continued support.
V II.

S ta f f
A.
B.
C.

S ta f f is doing a great job.
Physical Education (Coaches) overall are w e ll-q u a lifie d
in structors.
Coaching is what is being hampered a t present.
1. Many coaches not on our teaching s t a f f .

Recommendations:
A.
B.

V III.

Recommend h irin g teachers in major curriculum areas, and,
i f needed, h irin g those with a q u a lifie d coaching back­
ground.
Eliminating employee fru s tra tio n may be accomplished by
follow-through of administrative goals resu ltin g from
John White's s t a f f - a t t it u d e survey.

P.T.O.
The Board in 1977-78 is to design and present a Communications
Model. I t should be looked into fu rth e r as to how i t can compli­
ment or blend in with the Communications Model.

APPENDIX 0
ADMINISTRATIVE-COUNCIL REITERATION

186

187

Reiteration of May 3, 1978, Administrative Council regarding IV-C.
Proposals were discussed as outlined in a memo provided to the group.
Proposal I of the memo was not accepted because Mr. Cavin could not
maintain the program once implemented. Proposal I I from Dr. Morse fo r
summer work was discussed. Dr. Morse elaborated on the proposal.
Mr. Cavin spoke to the proposal and stated th at he was against funding
such a request. Mr. Piasecki responded. Mr. White suggested that per­
haps a consultant could be added to the costs. This proposal was
accepted. The cost change is $5,430.00. Proposal I I I , Appalachia Edu­
cational Laboratory--there was discussion by several members. Sugges­
tio n was made to change s t a f f stipends from three to fo u r. I t was also
suggested th a t a counselor be included as w e ll. I t was agreed to
increase the amount of $3,000. This proposal was approved. Proposal
IV— Request fo r survey. Dr. Herman spoke to this and said he was
opposed unless an outside agency is used or people are trained to do
this w ithin the d i s t r i c t . General discussion followed. Dr. Herman
inquired i f there is any chance o f repeating our ASK survey and would
i t be worthwhile. This proposal was not approved. Proposal V--Magnet
Planning—There was general discussion on the proposal with some other
suggestions being made. This proposal was accepted i f the program deci­
sion is to go by June 1, 1978.
Proposal V I—Board-Superintendent-Administration-Staff-Community
Relationship. Dr. Herman spoke to the proposal as did other members
of Council. Timing was a consideration. Dr. Herman said he could see
the f i r s t week of the August workshop. August 14, 15, and one-half day
on the 16th were proposed as acceptable dates. This proposal was
accepted.
Proposal V I I — Improve Communication S k ills . This proposal was also d is ­
cussed. I t was determined th a t the two (6 and 7) should not be consid­
ered together. Timing seemed to be the biggest problem. This proposal
was tabled.
Mr. White would li k e other proposals brought to his atten tio n before
next week. Firm materials must be to him soon. These proposals are
not to exceed $2,800.

188

ADMINISTRATIVE COUNCIL WORKSHEET
ESEA

5/3/78

IV-C

77-78 Allocation
5/1/78 Expenditures
10/1 Encumbered wages and f . b .
10/1 Substitutes w. and f . b .
10/1 Newsletter
10/1 D istrictw id e survey
10/1 Dissemination materials

Federal

Local

40,000
(12,251)
(6,408)
(500)

39,700
(12,251)
(6,408)

(1 ,000)
(600)
(400)
$18,841

PROPOSAL I

$10,250

PROPOSAL I I

$ 4,430

PROPOSAL I I I

$ 2,298

PROPOSAL IV

$ 2,900

PROPOSAL V

$ 6,000

PROPOSAL VI

$ 1,500

PROPOSAL V II

$ 1,600
$28,978

$21,041

A lternatives

189

ADMINISTRATIVE COUNCIL WORKSHEET I I

5/10/78

ESEA IV-C
77-78 Allocation
5 /1 /7 8 Wages expended
10/1/78 Wages encumbered
Other encumbrances
5/1 /78 Balance

$40,000
f 12,251)
( 6,908)
( 2,000)
$18,841

Proposal I

(CVIS)

[

Proposal I I

Community Ed. Workshop

( 5,430)

Proposal I I I

AELab

( 3,000)

Proposal IV

Community Survey

[

Proposal V

Magnet Planning

Proposal V-A

Science/Social Studies

Proposal VI

Crises Workshop

{ 1,500)

Proposal V II

Comm. Workshop

{ 1 ,600)

]

J

{ 6 , 000)

$ 1,311

190

May 4, 1978
Memo to:

John White

From:

Jim Morse

Re:

VA Proposal fo r T i t l e IV-C Funds

Per the d irec tio n of the Administrative Council on Wednesday, May 3,
1978, I am submitting an a lte rn a te proposal fo r IV-C Funds. This pro­
posal would go into e ffe c t i f the Magnet Program was not put into
e f fe c t at Roosevelt School fo r the Fall o f 1978. That decision w i l l
be made by June 1, 1978.
A.

O bjective--t o provide p i l o t programs following the recommendations
of the Curriculum Committees in Science and Social Studies. Both
committees have recommended materials and programs th a t could
be p i l o t tested. The Science Committee has recommended, and the
Board of Education approved, three lab-based elementary science
programs. The Social Studies Committee has recommended many
d if f e r e n t k its or resources th at could be p ilo te d by teachers
next Fall p rio r to implementation.

B.

Implementation-- ! recommend that $3,000 be allocated to be used
fo r p i l o t materials fo r the Social Studies K-12 curriculum. I
also recommend $3,000 be allocated to purchase p i l o t k its and
m aterials f o r the elementary science program.

C.

Costs— Social Studies p i l o t programs
Science p i l o t programs

JEM/jma

$3,000
3,000
$6,000

APPENDIX P
GOAL RATING SHEET

191

192

* * *
WHICH EDUCATIONAL GOALS HAVE PRIORITY?
*

*

*

READ EACH OF THE COAL STATE MEliTS ON THE REVERSE S IP E O F T H IS SHEET .

A s you e x a m in e ea ch goal sta te m e n t c a r e fu lly , read the
s im ila r g o a ls a s s o c ia te d w ith it. T he s im ila r g o a ls lis t e d under
ea c h o f th e g o a l sta te m e n ts a r e im p ortan t for u n d erstan d in g the
g o a l sta te m e n t.
A s k y o u r s e lf: How im portant is th is ed u cation al goal fo r
our sc h o o l d istr ic t?
Now g o to the G oal R ating S h eet. Put a v e r tic a l p e n c il m ark
through th e [1] fo r each o f the g o als that you b e lie v e to be m o r e
im p o rta n t than o th e r s .

| ; ; ; s ; ? ? ? ft
•

W

M

v

K

i

i

J

w

w

u

R erea d th e goal sta te m en ts you h a v e m a rk ed . F o r th o se
g o a ls you b e lie v e to be m o r e im p ortan t than o th e r s, p la c e a
p e n c il m a r k through the [3] for that goal sta te m e n t.

B i l S S S S t S ’J
C h o o se th e m o r e im p ortan t of th e s e g o a ls and put a m ark
th rou gh [5 ],
iJlBSiSSU
F o r th o s e g o a ls you b e lie v e to be o f e x tr e m e im p o rta n c e,
p la c e a m a r k through the [1 0 ].

I s m s

mi

A t le a s t one g o a l sh ou ld h ave fou r m a r k s when you h ave
c o m p le te d y o u r G oal S co rin g S h eet.

193

EDUCATIONAL GOALS
*T N

m

a r t not In any orde» ol Importance.

l e a r n n o i t o b e a g o o d c i t iz e n

A.
B.
C.
D.

Develop an awareness of c iv ic rights And responsibilities.
Develop attitudes lo> productive cltixenshlp in ■ democracy.
Develop An altitude of reipecl lor personal and public property*
Develop an understanding of the obligations And responsibilities
of ellfie n ship .

l e a r n h o * t o be a good m a n a g e r o f m o n e y , p r o p e r t y
a n d resources

A. Develop on undemanding of economic principles and responsibilities.
B Develop e bitily and understanding in personal buying, te llin g and
Investment,
C- Develop th ills in management of nalural and human resources and
man's environment.

LEARN HO* TO RESPECT AND GET ALONG WITH PEOPLE *H O
THINK. DRESS AND ACT DIFFERENTLY
A. Develop an appreciation for and an understanding ol other people and
other cutlures.
0 , Develop an understanding of p o litic a l, economic, and social p aile m t
of the rest of the world.
C. Develop ewareneis ol the interdependence of race*, creeds, nations
and cultures.
D- Develop an a w ire n a tt ol the processes ol group relationships.

DEVELOP A DESIRE FOR LEARNING NO* AND IN THE FUTURE
A. Develop Intellectual curiosity end eagerness lor life long learning.
B. Develop a positive altitude toward learning.
C. Develop a positive altitude toward continuing Independent education.

LEARN ABOUT AND TRY TO UNOERSTANO THE CHANGES
THAT TAKE PLACE IN THE VORLD
A. Develop a n ility ip adjust to the changing demands of society.
8- Develop an awareness and the a b ility to adjust to a changing world
and Ms problems,
C. Develop understanding of the past, Identify with the present, and the
a b ility to meet the future.

LEARN HO* TO USFLEtSURE TIME
A. Develop a b ility to use leisure time productively.
B Develop a positive attitude toward participation In a range of leisure
lime a c liv itie s -p h y s lc a l, In tsfltciu a l and creative,
C. Develop appreciation and interests which w ill isad to wise and
enjoyable use of leisure time.

DEVELOP SKILLS tH READING, WRITING, SPEAKING AND LtlTE N IH G
A, Oevefcp a bility lo communicate Ideas and lee lin g i effectively,
fl. Develop s k ills in oral and written English.

PRACTICE AND UNDERSTAND THE IDEAS OF HEALTH AND SAFETY
A. Establish an etfeciive individual physical Illness program.
0. Develop an understanding or good physical health and well being.
C. Establish sound personal health h ib tls and information.
D. Develop a concent for public health and safely.

UNDERSTAND AND PRACTICE DEMOCRATIC IDEAS AND IDEALS
A. Develop loyalty to American democratic ideaia,
B. Develop patriotism and loyally lo ideas of democracy.
C. Develop knowledge and appreciation of the rights and privileges
in our democracy.
D. Develop an understanding of our American heritage.

APPRECIATE CULTURE AND BEAUTY IN THE 1DRLD
A. Develop i b i l ii i e i for effective expression of Ideas and cultural
appreciation (line ana),
B. Cultivate appreciation lor baauly in various forms.
C. Develop creative s e lf*tp r* * » io n through various media (art, music,
wrtiing, etc.).
D. Develop special talents In a uitic, a n, iltsretyre and foreign languages.

LEARN HO* TO EXAMINE AND U IE INFORMATION
A. Develop a b ility lo examine constructively and creatively.
B. Develop a b ility lo use scientific methods.
C. Develop reasoning a b ilitie s.
D. Oevelop s k ills lo think and proceed logically.

GAIN INFORMATION NEEDED TO MAKE JOB f ELECTIONS
A. Promote w ll-undeisiending and eelf<fireciion In relation lo e iu d e nri
occupational interests.
B. Develop ths a b ility lo use Information end counseling services
related to the selection ol a Job.
C. Develop a knowledge of specific Inlormsilon about a particular vocation.

UNDERSTAND AND PRACTICE THE SKILLS OF FAMILY LIVING
A. Develop understanding and appreciation ol the principles of living
in the fim ily group.
B. Develop attitudes leading to acceptance o f responoiblltilea as family
members.
C. Develop an awareness of future family responsibilities and
achievement of s k ills in preparing to accept them.

DEVELOP PRIDE IN WORK AND A FEELING OF SELF-WORTH
A. Develop a leering of student pride In his achievements and progress.
B. Develop ■eir-understsnding and iflf* a w ir e n e it.
C. Develop the aludsnrs feeling of positive sell*worth, security, and
self-assurance,

LEARN TO RESPECT AND GET ALONG WITH PEOPLE
WITH WHOM WE WORK AND LIVE
A. Develop appreciation and respect for the worth and dignity of individuals,
B. Develop respect for Individual worth and understanding of minority
opinions and acceptance al majority decisions.
C. Develop a cooperative attitude toward living and working w ith others.

DEVELOP OOOD CHARACTER AND IE LF-R E IP E C T
A. Develop moral responsibility and a sound ethical and moral behavior,
B. Develop the student's capacity to discipline himself to work, study,
and play constructively,
C. Develop a moral end ethical sansa o l values, goals, and processes ol
free society,
D. Develop standards of personal character and Ida s i.

DEVELOP IK IL L S TO ENTER A SPECIFIC FIELD OF WORK
A. Oevelop a b flllis s and s k ills needed for Immediate employment.
B. Develop an awareness of opportunities and requirements related le
a specific fisld ol work,
C. D tvalop an appreciation of pood workmanship.

GAIN A OENERAL EDUCATION
A. Develop background and s k ills In the use of numbers, natural sciences,
mathematics, and social sciences.
B. Develop a fund of Information and concepts.
C. Develop special Interests and abilitie s.

194

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H A V E Y O U A N E D U C A T IO N A L , G O A L, F O R W E S T B L O O M F IE L D
T H A T IS N O T L I S T E D A B O V E ?
P le a a e w r i t e i t i n a s # 2 0

a n d s c o r e i t a c c o rd in g to ito r e la t iv e im p o r ta n c e to y o u .

20

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i \ S 7 f i r C T t O \ $ : USE NO . 2 B LA C K LE AD PENC IL (n o t in k o r b a ll p o in t 1 FOR MARKS. MAKE MARKS HE AV Y A N D DARK.
ERASE COMPLETELY A N Y MARKS YOU WISH TO C H A N G E .
T C 1 ' 97C

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APPENDIX Q

MAIL SURVEY TO SUPERINTENDENT SAMPLE

195

196

4601 Sandstone
Williamston, MI 48895
Superintendent
Public School D i s t r i c t
I'm not tryin g to se ll anything, although my correspondence with you
has to do with an investigation of s a l a b i l i t y .
In p a r t ic u la r , the
s a l a b i l i t y of a means by which local school d is t r ic t s may buy into the
concept of long-range planning fo r the development of programs designed
to b e nefit the students, s t a f f , and citizen s of a school community.
I hope to be able to research and report on a model fo r program planning
which was, and s t i l l i s , operative in a moderate-size public school d is ­
t r i c t in Michigan. The model's inception came about because the super­
intendent of the d i s t r i c t began to seek answers fo r the questions he had
as he sought the most e f fe c tiv e ways to implement new programs. With
assistance from ESEA T i t l e IV-C funds, the answers to those questions
apparently have been posed and seem to have had an impact in the commu­
n ity .
In the process of reporting the results o f the e f f o r t where the answers
to most of these questions can be found, I would lik e to answer typical
questions raised by school superintendents who are interested in longrange planning. W ill you help generate those questions by submitting
to me a b r ie f l i s t of thoughts and concerns which come to mind when you
consider the p o s s ib ility of adopting a model fo r planning the develop­
ment o f programs in your school d is t r ic t ?
I have enclosed here a graphical description o f the program-development
model. By examining i t , you may find questions arising from lack of
c l a r i t y as to how the model works. Please include these questions in
your response to me. Simply put, the graphic design may not explain
i t s e l f to your s a tis fa c tio n ; your questions are important to th at part
of n\y in ves tig a tio n .
Other questions you should include and return to me may seem only
remotely associated with long-range planning. Please include those
questions along with any in d ir e c tly or d ir e c tly related concerns you
might have.
With the assistance of my doctoral guidance committee a t Michigan State
U n iv ersity , I hope to complete th is study in the next few months and
w i l l return to you a description of s ig n ific a n t findings.
Yours sin ce re ly,
John H. White
enclosures:

The model, reaction and questions notepaper, return envelope

APPENDIX R

SUPERINTENDENT'S RESPONSE FORM

197

198

FOR YOUR COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS
WITHIN FIVE DAYS PLEASE RETURN TO:

JOHN H. WHITE
4601 SANDSTONE
WILLIAMSTON, MI

48895

IF THIS IS NOT COMPLETED BY THE SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, PLEASE
INDICATE WHO COMPLETED THIS RESPONSE INSTEAD.
( T i t l e or position)
I.

II.

III.

IV.

V.

V I.

V II.

V III.

IF YOU PREFER A TELEPHONE CONVERSATION, RETURN ONLY THIS FORM AND THE
NUMBER WHERE I CAN REACH YOU SOON:
USE BOTH SIDES IF YOU NEED THEM.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION.

APPENDIX S

FOLLOW-UP INTERVIEW WITH PARTICIPATING
ADMINISTRATORS FORM

199

200

Follow-up interview with West Bloomfield School D i s t r i c t Administrators
who were involved in the Long-Range Planning A c t iv it ie s and who continue
to be serving the school d i s t r i c t in the same adm inistrative position
to th is date.
TEN QUESTIONS ASKED:
I.

What e f fe c t did the Long-Range Planning Project have on you
personally?

II.

Is your management process d iffe r e n t now as a re s u lt of the
project?

III.

Do you feel you understand Management By Objectives, as a
management process?

IV.

Is long-range planning a routine part of your adm inistrative
style?

V.

What components of PLANNING (as you know i t ) do you feel are
important?

V I.

V II.

V III.

IX.

X.

Unimportant?

Generally, what remains of the LPR Project? . . . a c t i v e l y operating
in the d i s t r i c t or in your ju ris d ic tio n ?

What negative results were there?

What positive feelings among people were generated?

What would you have implemented d iffe r e n tly ?

Additional comments, perceptions, concerns:

APPENDIX T

SCHEMATIC REPRESENTATION OF WEST BLOOMFIELD SCHOOL
DISTRICT'S ACCOUNTABILITY PLAN

201

S C H E M A T IC R E P R E S E N T A T IO N O F W E S T B L O O M F IE L D SC H O O L D IS T R IC T 'S A C C O U N T A B IL IT Y P LA N

D istrict'.". D ecision
Maker.--,

P o ten tial R ecycle

-------------------------------------------

r

■

I

B oard P o lic ie s

r AHOpt

•L

A d m in is tra to r’s
Job D escrip tio n s

-

1

S y s te m P lan fo r
P ro g ra m D evelop m 't

rp
N egotiated
M a s te r C o ntracts

* 4
Y e a r ly
B oard Goals

4
D is tric tw id e
Co m m un ications
G overnance Med el

D is tr ic t's M anagers

P o ten tia l Recycle

R e c y c le

"ule”
G oal S e ttin g Proced ures

S ystem s Planning

Nee

O U (O rq n n ira tio n a l
Devclopn^enf)______
P E R T (P r o g r a m Evalua­
tion and R eview T ech ­
nique )
PPciS ( P r o g r a m , F ta n n in g , Budgeting S y s te m )
T e a m M anagem ent

ssessmcnts

p e rfo rm a n c e O bjectives
S p ecificatio n s

Co rnprehe ns ive
Techniques

rl

A ttitu d in a l S u rv ey s
Issue P ap ers
P o s itio n P ap ers

M OO (M an ag em en t by
O b je ctiv es )___________
F u tu re Techniques

F u tu re T o ols
And E valu ate
i

R ecycling A c tiv itie s

_________________

ro
o
ro

V

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2Q3

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