Way too much of journalism today is consumed by inane pieces that highlight something offensive a leader said and then trot out a bunch of statements from detractors verifying that what was said was in fact offensive or supporters defending what was said as not that bad (or taken out of context or misunderstand or yada yada, you get the idea). It’s useless and moves our discourse nowhere. It certainly isn’t news, at least not in the way it’s presented and analyzed.

I bring that up because what I’m about to do could be mistaken for that. I hope I offer something different, more measured and cautious. There’s a fine line to walk here. I’m not here just to levy criticism. Rather, I’m after critique. Because I do believe it matters what leaders say. It especially matters what leaders say about the very people they get hired or elected to serve.

What, and who, am I referring to? The recent comments of Pat Mapes, the new superintendent of Hamilton Southeastern Schools (HSE), from a WFYI article on March 13.

What does the Mapes say?

(Yes, I would like you to think of this once-viral song when you read that sub-header.)

The WFYI article I referenced is from March 13, titled “New HSE Superintendent Pat Mapes on reading, diversity, and transparency.” It was essentially a condensed, repackaged version of a longer-form piece, which you can read here.

HSE has, to put it gently, caused a bit of drama in the year preceding Mapes’ hiring. WFYI politely described the hubbub in the most public media terms possible by saying the district has “struggled over the last year with changes in leadership, administrative departures, and public divide surrounding the school board’s decisions.”

Unpacking all that is another set of blogs. For now, I aim to critique this particular statement from Mapes when he was responding to the issue of chronic absenteeism (quoted in full from the WFYI piece):

“Our attendance rates of chronic absenteeism across the state is kind of appalling. And I think part of that is parents have to realize the value of what we’re providing in schools and we’ve kind of lost that,” Mapes said. “This is a partnership. We sit here and wait for kids to come to school each and every day. If there’s not an emphasis at home of the value of an education, and where you can go if you have a quality education, then students can’t figure that out yet. They’re not mature enough to understand, but their parents should understand that.”

Pat Mapes, Superintendent of Hamilton Southeastern Schools

Sentence by sentence, let’s unpack what I see going on here. His words in italics. My critique following. Let’s go.

“Our attendance rates of chronic absenteeism across the state is kind of appalling.” Yes. They are. No disagreement there and no, I’m not being trite. Students learn best when they are in school. It’s essential that we raise attendance rates (and also make sure the schools they attend are high-quality, but that’s for another piece).

“And I think part of that is parents have to realize the value of what we’re providing in schools and we’ve kind of lost that.” This is where Mapes loses me. If it wasn’t clear, Mapes is indicating that parents (and really, to be more precise, in this passage he is referring to parents of color based on the context of his statement) do not value education. Or at least they do not value it enough to make sure their students get to school regularly. I think this is categorically untrue. It’s also dangerous.

The idea that Black and Brown parents value education less than white parents is an insidious trope. It’s been fallaciously used to explain the opportunity gap. In my experience, every parent deeply cares about ensuring their child receives an excellent education. Now, what they may value less is an individual institution (or even a particular system like a school district). Perhaps because so many of our institutions have shut parents of color out or treated them as less than for centuries. Moreover, perhaps those parents realize the value but do not receive the value their schools ought to provide.

“This is a partnership. We sit here and wait for kids to come to school each and every day.” I actually love the first sentence there. Mapes is right. Education is a partnership between a school and its parents. But he betrays himself with the next sentence. It’s not good enough today, if it ever was, to simply “wait for kids to come to school.” You have to partner with parents. You have to respect them and reach out and understand what’s going on. I bet there are numerous valid obstacles and barriers that result in chronic absenteeism for most kids. Schools, if they are willing to find out what they are, could possibly be part of breaking down those barriers, at least in some circumstances. But it won’t happen with a “wait and see” approach.

“If there’s not an emphasis at home of the value of an education, and where you can go if you have a quality education, then students can’t figure that out yet. They’re not mature enough to understand, but their parents should understand that.” Here it is again. An indication that Mapes believes parents of chronically absent students do not value education. He’s right that kids on their own aren’t always mature enough (though I think he undersells just how much kids actually do value getting a quality education for themselves) to understand the value of school. (I for one never saw the value in calculus and never will.) But I absolutely reject his insinuation about parents. Parents care. They want what’s best for their kids. Even if that is not true 100% of the time, I think we should start with that as our frame our reference until proven otherwise. I, personally, have yet to be proven otherwise.

I’m not here to condemn Mapes’ statement or ask for an apology or a retraction. For starters, I don’t live in Mapes’ district. But if Mapes wants to live up to the part of his statement where he said, “This is a partnership,” he needs to shift his mindset.

The parents of HSE deserve a leader who respects them and sees them as equal partners in the education of their children rather than as indifferents who just don’t get the value of an education. Mapes can be that leader. But not if he clings to a mindset that gives rise to comments like these.