Simptums of D-Troit Publik Edjecashun

Here's a new slogan for Detroit public schools: get an education or you'll end up like, well... like the president of the city school board.

It's bad enough Detroit's schools are currently graduating a pathetic 1 out of every 4 students.  But now, the Detroit News is wondering what kind of example the public school board's leadership is setting when it sends out emails like this one:

Do DPS control the Foundation or outside group? If an outside group control the foundation, then what is DPS Board row with selection of is director? Our we mixing DPS and None DPS row's, and who is the watch dog?

And this one sent to supports just a few days ago:

If you saw Sunday's Free Press that shown Robert Bobb the emergency financial manager for Detroit Public Schools, move Mark Twain to Boynton which have three times the number seats then students and was one of the reason's he gave for closing school to many empty seats.

The author of these emails is DPS board president Otis Mathis, a life-long resident of Detroit and public secondary school and higher-ed graduate.  Mathis acknowledges he's a "horrible writer," but shouldn't a lack of basic skills like writing disqualify someone to lead the city's board of education? 

In another city, these revelations might be grounds for disqualification. But Mathis is liked and defended by many of his peers, who cite his collegiality, lack of defensiveness and leadership as more important than his writing skills.

I'm sure Mr. Mathis is a likeable guy.  However, his is just one of many cases in the public sector where standards have been thrown out the window.  Why is it consistently ok for quality standards--the same standards demanded by the private sector--to be ignored in public positions? 

Would a publication like Townhall (or any other that took itself seriously) ever hire me if I actually wrote in language like that of the title of this post?  Why then would it be ok for the public education system to--a system the nation regularly relies on to EDUCATE our children?

And shouldn't the president of the board set some kind of personal standard for public education?  It'd be like having a manufacturer who has no basic knowledge of his company's products.

Public or private sector: we need to demand standards of quality!