This morning's News Chief has an article about a new web site that 'blasts' the Lake Wales Charter School System. (Registration required for News Chief article - BugMeNot Login) The web site, BreaktheCharter.com is a homegrown effort of the husband of a teacher who was recently fired by the Lake Wales Charter School System, so there might be some bias :-)

Nothing shocking there, just citizens wanting to be heard. I will question the validity of some of the comments on the site since they are posted anonymously, but that is a discussion for later. Also the web site creator should have used a blog format rather than a traditional web site format, but once again that's getting off the subject.

The comments from Lake Wales Charter Superintendent Clint Wright sparked my interest though. According to the News Chief here is what Clint said:

"I am not going to give you a reaction to that, I don't have time for that. They can do what they want to do. If people want to talk to me about legitimate concerns, they can bring them to me. As far as I am concerned, I am not going to do anything with the Web site.

Clint looks like you have a ticket for the Clueless express.

There are two options for Clint's quote.

1. He was misquoted: In that case he needs a blog. A blog would allow him to fully present his side of the story/interview and provide his quotes in full context. Just ask Mark Cuban about this.

2. He was quoted properly and he meant it: Where to start?

a. "If people want to talk to me about legitimate concerns, they can bring them to me." Sorry Clint, we're kinda busy. We don't have time to come talk to you; you need to come to us. That line makes you sound a bit like an elitist. Somebody else has created a forum where the discussion is taking place, you should stop by some time.

b. Go buy a copy of The Cluetrain Manifesto and read it.

c. Start a blog, get your side of the story out there. Clayton Wilcox the Superintendent of Pinellas County Schools has a blog. So far the response has been overwhelming, most of it positive. Often the media will highlight the negative aspects of any story (especially with school systems). With a blog you can speak directly to the parents and tell them the good and bad. Perhaps you can answer one parent's question. "what will the future at lwhs (Lake Wales High School) hold for my incoming freshman and my outgoing senior?"

d. If you visit the site in question you will see that not all the comments are negative, some of the comments are positive statements about the program supposedly provided by those working in the system. Clint is missing a golden opportunity to embrace the discussion and put forth his views

e. You need to do something about this site since the media will always be looking at it. Sites like BreaktheCharter serve as a lightning rod for negative stories. Just ask Delta how much they love Ellen Simonetti's blog. Especially the story about how Delta jets are being sent to Mexico for service by non FAA licensed mechanics.

It will be interesting to see how this saga plays out over the coming months. Will the discussion at BreaktheCharter continue to grow or will it fizzle out? Will the local media pick up on stories from comments posted by teachers and parents?

I'll keep you posted.