Dunwoody Organ Out of Tune

It is not surprising that it took a violin teacher to point this out.

In the event you are new to Dunwoody there have been fewer issues more contentious than individuals providing private music lessons in their homes. You might also be unaware that musicians are generally what we mere mortals consider "perfectionists". They have to be. See, if you blow five percent of the notes in a thousand note piece you'll get boo-ed off the stage, and rightly so. In any other area of endeavor ninety five percent correct is considered a solid A.

What we've seen recently is these two worlds colliding.

The teacher, wanting to do the right thing and do it the right way, followed the procedure for obtaining a Special Land Use Permit (SLUP) for her home business. She did everything required, including posting notice in the Official Dunwoody Organ.

That's where things fell apart--based on performance to date, Dunwoody would be awarded a Gentleman's 'C' far from an eighty, let alone a ninety five. And it is by the City's own admission that the Official Organ is declared inadequate as this particular petition requires a county-wide notice. Sadly this tired old parlor pump organ we picked up from a deceased relative is not only out of tune it seems to be missing entire registers.

And what should happen now? Well, one frustrated citizen just got an object lesson in "layers of government" and we have learned once again that folks down at Smart City Hall didn't even read ordinances they wrote and voted into law.  There is one thing we can be certain of--that the City Organist will not replace the Official Organ.  Instead look for him to rewrite the score so we can continue to limp along with the decrepit old instrument of yesteryear. And everyone in the recital hall will applaud. They must all be deaf.

Micro-Philanthropy Comes to Dunwoody

It has only taken two years for the City to position itself to "need to raise taxes". As expected, the blogosphere has seen more than it's fair share of outspoken advocates of City government taking your money to support their whimsical "must haves". Recent examples include:

"I'm totally fine with a moderate increase in taxes..."

or:

"It's time to increase taxes..."

But there is also a new voice being heard. It is the voice of those who, while they want something, are willing to pick up the tab for their own flights of fancy:

"We are more than willing to pay a couple hundred dollars more a year for an improved quality of life for us and our children."

Bravo! This is a voice of reason emanating from the relatively new movement known as "Micro-Philanthropy". As the name suggests it is a grass-roots, locally targeted form of philanthropy, a means to throw your own money directly at those things you wish to support.

This is not without precedent. For years State and Federal tax forms have offered those who wish to selectively and individually increase their taxes the opportunity to do just that. But now we're seeing this take hold at the local level, where people of integrity and honor are standing tall and saying

"Yes, take my money, but only my money, because I want you to build these things for me."

You might call it "voting with your wallet" and it is even rumored that Dunwoody is teaming up with PayPal to offer Micro-Philanthropy opportunities on the City website.

And to those who say we should all "just man-up and pay whatever taxes the City wants", these progressives, dare we say, these intellectuals, offer a clear, firm message:

"Grow a pair for yourself. Then trot down to City Hall, cut them off and hand them over. You clearly have no need for them." 

So the next time someone attempts to cajole you into joining in a chorus of "Please Mayor, Raise Everyone's Taxes For Little Ole Me", ask them how much of their money they've donated to their pet causes.

What Brings You Here?

Not to this posting. To Dunwoody.

Why did you choose to live in Dunwoody?

It should come as no surprise that most folks in Dunwoody were neither born here nor raised here. They moved here. The question is "why"? Why, given all the options, did folks move here in say the last five or six years?

Was it the parks? What, did they find a real estate agent recently released from a mental ward and fresh off her meds who drove these prospects around pointing out vacant lots that might become a park someday? And did these tragically "smart people" then buy a house close by...but not too close by? After all, if you don't want your own kids literally playing in your backyard you sure as hell wouldn't want other folk's brats playing right behind it, right? And is that what all this "send your kids to the park to play" is really all about? Are people in Dunwoody so uptight they cannot tolerate the neighbor's kids playing in their own backyards?

Perhaps it was the schools. Legend has it that a house in Vandy commands a premium of as much as fifty thousand dollars. For K-5, now K-3, perhaps back to K-5. Call it six years, because no one is suggesting the middle school or high school are worth any premium. So let's call it $50K. That's well over $8000/year. Right...now let's check on this...yep...there is absolutely no way could you buy, on the open market, five years of elementary education for $8000/yr. And if you could, there is just no way it would be as fine an education as DeKalb County offers at Vandy. Nah...it can't really be about schools. Surely "smart people" would have done a little research and found out that East Cobb's public schools routinely kick Dunwoody's ass when it comes to academics.


Were they forced to live in DeKalb? Did the courts make it condition of their probation or what? Then did they decide Dunwoody was the best DeKalb has to offer? What, Smokerise not good enough for you? Decatur too funky? Chamblee not have (good) enough restaurants? Doraville missing a farmhouse? Stone Mountain not have enough parks and recreation nearby? Surely it can't be that houses in Avondale all look the same or that Brookhaven is too close to MARTA.

And why is this even worthy of a rant from The Other Dunwoody? Shouldn't we be discussing Ernie's neon sign which is in violation of a silly city code?

This is topical because a vocal, if otherwise insignificant, group of fairly recent Dunwoodians apparently moved here to raise taxes. They seemingly come from a land where it is accepted practice to appropriate other people's money to spend on their whimsical fancies and toys for the kids they have but cannot afford. They're here. They're mouthy. They're posting all over the blogosphere. It demands a response.

So it has been left to The Other Dunwoody to ask the obvious, and apparently hard question:

"If you don't, and didn't, like Dunwoody, why the hell did you move here?"

City Increasing Taxes

You heard it here first. Actually if you really heard it here first you haven't been listening.

For quite some time the mayor and city council, all very smart folks, have been working to fritter our money away on their pet projects while ignoring core services. Ultimately this achieves the goal of every politician: increase their power by increasing the money available to wield power. And just where does that additional money come from? You guessed it: tax increases!

Have you noticed the poor condition of streets in Dunwoody? Do you realize that the referendum was a stop-work order to the county's road repair crews? Or, that Dunwoody has done little or nothing to pave and properly maintain our streets in two years? Ah, but some consultants have been paid. Smart consultants. Sadly that won't keep your front end aligned now will it?

Have you also noticed the bloated police department? Perhaps if fewer officers were sent on international junkets to Israel and Georgia, or patrols spent time in the city rather than cruising 285 we wouldn't need the bloat. We might even go round up burglars, for whom we have solid physical evidence, rather than calling them up and inviting them for coffee and donuts. Guess what, the perp didn't show.

And then there is legal. If a certain startup had shown the growth that the city attorney's office has, well we might have quite a savings in that department as well.

But routine negligence and excessive overhead are simply not enough. By delaying work on core needs we built up a surplus and that just had to go. And it did -- to buy the "PVC Farm". Why? Not because it was a good land deal and certainly not because we lacked other, more important uses for the money. The real reason is much simpler.

It seems some folks, probably from neighboring apartments, have installed a basketball goal. In Dunwoody!!! Not very smart, eh? As you may know, we've had heated debates over where the next baseball fields are located, but basketball courts? Fuggedaboutit! Dribble, dribble, fake-pump, shoot is a sports analogy about the lack of transparent government in Dunwoody, not something we want to see on the commute home.

Ahhh but baseball. That's the pure American sport for the pure unhyphenated-American. For loyal Dunwoody fans this purchase was a triple play. It eliminated a majority of our surplus funds. It will eliminate the basketball goals. And it prevents the construction of apartment homes. Clearly a higher priority than roads and sidewalks.

It doesn't take Nostradamus to have seen this coming. After all when we voted for a city we immediately made it more expensive to live in Dunwoody. The county, being unincorporated, doesn't levy franchise fees, while our fledgling, now poor-mouthing, city does. Fees that we all pay. And it is quite the line item on the income side of the ledger.

So there you have it. The city started off with more funds and a new, larger source of funding than the county ever had and now look at where we are: two years of decaying infrastructure and a decimated surplus followed by a call for tax increases. Some are saying Dunwoody really is full of smart people who certainly should have known this would be the direct consequence of forming this city. Though we don't get a "do-over", when you go to the polls this fall you might want to ask yourself: "are these people worth what I'm already paying, let alone more?" Show them how much smarter you've become.

Imported Apartheid

"Liberalism flourishes where it is not challenged."

Though many may not know it, Georgia was on the losing side of the war between the states. This ignorance is not due to a failed education or a tragic accident, but is simply due to the fact that many folks, particularly those in Dunwoody (and we know how smart they are), ain't from around here.

These relative newcomers are not steeped in Southern Tradition and may not be aware that Civil Rights legislation, which never saw strong support from Southern States, nonetheless imposes certain restrictions and provides for direct supervision by alleged adults in Washington. A significant part of the Civil Rights legislative initiative was to counteract decades of minority voter disenfranchisement by a dominant white power structure.

As one might suspect, the South had no epiphany and did not rise up saying "we must change our ways for they are wrong!" Instead, it was outsiders, generally liberal elites, with no other concern for the South but that they get their house in order, who by force of law saw to it that the South was not left to its own devices with regards to the ballot box. This is true to this day.

One would expect this to have nothing to do with Dunwoody. After all the Justice Department signed off on the referendum vote. But now a civil rights icon, Rev. Joseph Lowery, has filed suit against Dunwoody and all the other new cities claiming they violate the Constitution and should be dissolved.  The basis of the claim is that by creating these cities a white power structure has segregated itself from a larger, more diverse community and thereby disenfranchises the now relatively few minority voters that are within the new city limits.

The Justice Department pre-approval probably means the referendum vote, odious as it was, passes judicial muster. But there are some interesting circumstances unique to Dunwoody. In an effort to ensure victory, the vote was held in July. Of an election year. A presidential election year. With a (later to be proven successful) black candidate. Perhaps the courts, should they examine the voter demographics in July and November, would find an alarming disparity in the demographics of voter turnout. Again, probably not enough to win the day.

A more significant issue is how Dunwoody's voter districts are laid out with regards to demographics. Dunwoody's minority community is largely confined to the apartments in the southern part of town. Dunwoody's three voting districts are eastern, western and a middle district effectively carving the minority community into three easily managed chunks. Every reader knows why our great white leaders did not create a southern, northern and middle district. That surely would have led to a minority voice on City Council.

Those readers from north of the Mason Dixon are surely thinking: "this is just those redneck cracker racists doing it again", but the origins of this white power structure is quite interesting. At the same time the South was being rehabilitated by the North, Northerners were migrating South for love of sun and money. Mostly money. Did they bring with them their great Northern Enlightenment? Most assuredly. NOT! We can tell by the fact that upon moving South they did not integrate themselves into the existing community, but rather segregated themselves in largely undeveloped areas to the North of town. Yes, enlightenment is a wonderful thing. In the abstract.

Dunwoody was one of these places. Farmland transformed into a bedroom community, filled with happy outsiders eager to create a community just like the one they left. White. And white they expected to stay as the mere cost of entry -- housing prices -- kept most undesirables at bay.

But the rest of the region, DeKalb in particular, was not frozen in time. As Dunwoody grew larger, richer and whiter, DeKalb grew darker. The tipping point occurred when the last white county CEO, from the Dunwoody area, was replaced by the first of a continuing series of black leaders. These new leaders took a more favorable view of developer plans to build apartments in Dunwoody which provided access to some of DeKalb's best schools. Even to those who could never purchase a home in the area--more often than not, people of color.

And that is what local control was really all about and it is what fueled the drive to form this city. But at the end of the day, the desire to maintain a segregated lifestyle is to the City of Dunwoody what slavery was to the Civil War. It is just that noble.

And the irony of relocated, "enlightened Yankees" creating neo-segregation in the South should be lost on no one.

Pub King

In a land apart and a time ago there was a village characterized as so many were as a "one pub village". And as was the custom, the pub was where the men, and only some of the women would congregate to recount the events of the day and perhaps to talk a little treason. This made "pub time" an important event on anyone's calendar and led to the owner becoming one of the most influential men in the village.

As the village grew, the owner's influence expanded as well, to the point he was crowned "Pub King" in an event as auspicious as it was unofficial. He had gathered round a cohort of pontifical elders, toadies one and all, who were appointed by the newly minted "King" to his court, commonly referred to as the Pub King Gang. For many happy years the Pub King and his Gang basked in the adoration of the villagers, holding court and giving counsel on all matters large and small. During this golden age of the Pub King, the village continued to grow and with it the stature of king and court.

Until one day, when a Wanderer from afar came to the village and was so struck by its wonderous beauty that he knew then and there this was to become his home. This Wanderer had traveled the world visiting many a village and found this one to be vastly superior to all others. Except in one regard. This was the only village of its size, in all his travels, that offered a man only one option to refresh body and soul. The village's singular imperfection was its equally singular pub and the Wanderer immediately set about addressing this easily corrected imperfection.

The village was to have a second pub.

This revolutionary act was fueled not just by an obvious lack of bar stools on any given Friday night but also by the Wanderer's unquenchable desire for some mysterious brew known as "Hoegaarden". Clearly a contrived name evoking either a quaint pastoral image of a farmer slaving at back-breaking field work or maybe "Hoe" in the common, vulgar form refers to a "garden of delights", or perhaps a combination of both with wild oats being sown. Probably one of the latter as aficionados of the brew liken it to absinthe: exotic, often illicit, and with a magical, romantic quality that no matter who imbibes, man or woman, 'tis the woman who becomes more fetching.

Nonetheless, the village was to have another pub and in that pub would be Hoegaarden. Or thought this Wanderer.

The Pub King was not amused. He called his Gang and set about a plan to "inform" the villagers that the new Pub was not to be entered on penalty of excommunication. No one seen entering the Wanderer's Pub was welcome ever again in the presence or establishment of the Pub King.

Many villagers speaking of loyalty but acting of fear bowed to the Pub King's wishes. But some did not and as tales of the delights of the Wanderer's Pub spread, often in hushed voices lest the Pub King hear, more and more of the villagers were drawn to the Wanderer's Pub. And they were drawn not only to a mysterious new brew, but to tales of far off lands and peoples. They came to understand their neighbors, to see people and customs previously withheld from their view.

But the Pub King was furious, spewing rage from his pulpit backed by the chorus of his toady Gang. But he grew hoarse and soon he found himself surrounded only by his Gang. The villagers had taken no notice of his rants, no longer lived in fear of his threats. Given choice they had chosen and they had not chosen the Pub King.

Only a few years later yet another pub opened and the Pub King found himself all but alone and now being unable to retain a loyal following was forced to close his once famous pub. Shortly thereafter he succumbed to the senility and gout that many believed plagued him for most of his adult life. In death, as in life, the Pub King was ultimately of little note and in the village there was no sense of his passing. Not even the surviving members of his Gang were to be found in mourning, crying.

Who Would Dare...

...Do Such a Thing?

As you may know, the Board of Directors deciding where to locate the Georgia Music Hall of Fame delayed the decision to allow the remaining contestants the opportunity to "sweeten the pot". The new deadline is imminent.

Now suppose you were to hear that one contestant, in identifying itself as the winner, has explicitly named another to be a loser. In fact, this self-appointed winner offers to double-down on this loser. How? Glad you asked.

The party of the first part, the alleged winner, intends to have the party of the second part, the aforementioned loser, do all the heavy lifting associated with restoring and maintaining all the artifacts comprising the GMHF assets, whilst they, the party of the first part, will take all the power, glory and money that comes with being the controlling and public facing entity. To really salt up the wound, the party of the first part never even discussed this matter with the party of the second part. Rather, they went directly to the GMHF committee, and the public, with the plan.

So, the question still stands: "who would dare do such a thing?" Well, if you guessed "Dunwoody", you would be correct. Or, if this quiz show runs like Jeopardy!, your response in the form of a question might be "who the hell do these arrogant SOBs in Dunwoody think they are?"

Hopefully this is just the question the GMHF Board is currently pondering. If the unadulterated arrogance of Dunwoody Music Conservancy Retail Organization is not adequately repulsive to the Board, then heaven help the GMHF.

Dunwoody Lands Shuttle

Upon hearing that NASA was decommissioning the Shuttle Discovery and offering it as a museum piece, the Dunwoody Power Brokers launched into action forming yet another "worthy cause nonprofit" to ensure that Dunwoody is properly recognized for all its contributions to the space program by bringing the shuttle home to Dunwoody.

The head courtier en alimentation was not quoted in any of the local rags as saying

"This is a great opportunity for our community. Adding the shuttle to the Music Hall of Fame, the Farmhouse, the Donaldson Farm, the Brook Run Theatre, and a plethora of apartments, will establish, beyond any doubt, that Dunwoody is the world's most opportunistic collector of things no one else wants. And it's free."

When not questioned regarding the approximately $29,000,000.00 shipping and handling charges, the bróicéir cumhachta did not respond with

"We've got that covered. We've contacted a Chinese firm that will strip the tiles and encase them in glass as commemorative trophies. These will retail for around $100.00, plus S&H, and will include engraved signatures of the mayor and city council. For about $20.00 more you can have a custom message of two lines, no more than eight words inscribed as well. We expect to sell approximately 100,000 in the first year which will put quite a dent in those charges."

 This of course warranted a challenge from the nonexistent interviewer

"Aren't there less than 34,000 tiles on a shuttle? Each with an individual serial number?"

Resulting in the altogether unsurprising nonanswer of

"So what's your point? Look, the Chinese are clever and we trust they'll do the right thing and get us as many units as we can sell. Plus, once the tiles are off we have corporate sponsors waiting in the wings to buy ad space on the outside of the shuttle. When we get this thing up in the air in the Perimeter Mall parking lot, it is going to be some hot ad real estate. We expect that will cover the remainder of the startup costs in the first year alone. After that it is pure profit."

"What? You're going to turn one of the last remaining space shuttles into a NASCAR trophy? You're going to stick it up on a pole? What about folks getting a view from the cockpit. And what's this about profit, isn't this a non-profit organization?"

"Look. Don't get testy, OK? A non-profit clears its books at the end of the fiscal year and if that means bonuses must be paid, well that's what happens. And, by the way, many of our corporate citizens are damn proud of America's space program and are happy to be associated with it as a show of public support and good will. Offering a little recognition on the side of rocket isn't asking too much. As for the cockpit, we're taking that out. It goes in the mall where patrons can see what it was like to be in the shuttle itself. And we're planning member's nights where Gold and Platinum Members are allowed to suit up and sit at the controls. But it will be a cash bar."

 "Sounds like a 1980's mall game arcade. What makes you think NASA would ever back this plan?"

Without missing a beat, the  corredor de poder did not continue with

"We've assembled quite an impressive array of résumés. Dunwoody has an unbelievable community of folks related to outer space. We've got folks who once lived in California, where there are lots of space activities. We have a member of the board who was born in Houston. You know, "Mission Control"? Houston we have a problem? We even have one board member who intends to retire in Florida very near the Kennedy Space Flight Center. So we have the chops to become the Huntsville of the South. We think NASA will recognize this and quite frankly realize there is no better place than Dunwoody for that shuttle."

So there you have it dear readers. Dunwoody is well on its way to adding yet another charm to its bracelet.

Sanity Reigns

It must be the weather, but sanity reigned at a recent "Smart" City Council meeting. Specifically, the tax intended to fund the effort to buy the Georgia Music Hall of Fame was rejected. It is interesting to note that the Mayor is earning quite the reputation as an advocate of increasing taxes as he is now two for two.

The best objections were based on principles and trust. One Councilor, you can probably guess which one, noted that the Convention Bureau had not followed the requirements of transparency. Such shenanigans are always suspect. Another Councilor questioned the veracity of those who claimed "we will drop the tax if we do not get the GMHoF" by probing whether the real plan was to immediately borrow against the allegedly "potential" future taxes. Very likely that is exactly the plan. Behind closed doors, naturally.

The lame justification of a tax increase is smarmy, but 100% unadulterated Dunwoody, and is based on belief that it is righteous to tax everyone but ourselves. As if any tax we don't pay really isn't a tax...maybe that's the way smarter folks see it.

As for the GMHoF...the Dunwoody proposal, even just as a document, was by far the worst of the bunch, a rather sad sandwich of souse between stale white bread. Starting with a chorus of "listen to us, we're smart" it ends with a crescendo reprise of "how great we art". But in the middle we find little of substance and what is there is rather unappetizing: no recognition of the importance of certification and conservancy, no explanation of the synergies with existing music venues (there are none and no plans for any), the rich heritage of artistic incubation (we have none), just a feeble appeal to greed with a plan to pick into children's pockets with field trips.  This earned Dunwoody a well-deserved last place.

If Dunwoody were serious about music we would already have our version of Chastain Park Amphitheatre, perhaps smaller, perhaps "on the lawn", perhaps at Brook Run, maybe even in conjunction with Perimeter College. Or perhaps even a bandstand in the village--even if only used for the Fourth of July parade. But this is Dunwoody. The public outcry regarding traffic, late night noise and lights would be deafening. And heaven forbid it require trimming a tree. Fact is Dunwoody voters want a sleepy little burgh, and when we want to see a show we'll go to Alpharetta, Sandy Springs, Vinings or Gwinnett. Maybe even the Fox.

This scam was always about getting OPM into Perimeter Center. Fine. Let them acquire the land,  and pony up the dollars, and build their "music center", and update the proposal. If successful, PCID will be to music what Helen is to alpine villages.

School Punch-Down List

We return to our regularly scheduled program...

These are presented without colour commentary or supporting argument. This may be provided at a later date if page hits indicate interest.

Though some items are related these are in no particular order.

• Eliminate tenure.
• Novice teachers have two years before they can be fired.
• Non-novice teachers can be fired with neither notice nor cause. 
• Convert all defined benefit retirement plans to defined contribution plans.
• Eliminate all out of system transfers for children of employees.
• Institute random, no-warning, suspicion-less, post-employment drug testing. 
• All teacher CV available online, including transcripts covering all for-credit study and training programs.
• Reorganize schools into four levels: pre-k thru 2nd grade; 3rd thru 6th; 7th thru 10th; and 11 & 12th grades.
• 11 & 12th grade programs are either pre-college or vo-tech.
• Pre-k thru 2nd grade and 3rd thru 6th grade students have the same Primary Teacher year to year (AKA: looping).
• 7th thru 10th and 11 & 12th grade students have the same "Home room Run" class teacher who is responsible for those students' academic achievement. 
• Primary Teachers and Home Run teachers coordinate meetings between subject matter teachers, tutors, administrators and the student and parent.
• Primary Teachers and Home Run teachers act as in-school disciplinarian on behalf of the parent.
• Allow parents to bid on teachers thru a Dutch Auction with proceeds going to the General System Fund to offset taxes.
• Replace high stakes end-of-year tests with high stakes start-of-year entrance exams.
• Performance on start-of-year entrance exams factors into Primary Teacher and Home Run teacher evaluations.
• Entrance exams are created and administered by a state agency, proctored by junior and senior college students preparing to become teachers.
• De-skill Pre-k thru 3rd grade "instruction": hire high school graduates, give them two years of training and pay commensurate with that position.
• De-skill administrative positions and significantly cut pay ranges.
• Eliminate "golden parachutes."
• Pay "interims" their current salary unless they are selected for the permanent position at which point they are retroactively compensated at the new rate.
• Eliminate all "Curriculum Development" and related positions.
• Eliminate School Resource Officers, using local law enforcement as necessary.
• Eliminate school psychologists/psychiatrists, social workers, grief counselors and other such soft social services. 
• Replace education colleges' hyphenated topic-education degrees with a dual degree (subject matter and education) degree program. 
• Recognize credentials from accredited programs only.
• Accept a license from any other state which has outperformed Georgia on nationally normed and recognized academic evaluations in three or more of the last five years. 
• Recognize only those credentials in a legitimate and directly applicable subject matter or education area.
• Create state curricula--require its use.
• Eliminate the use of vendor supplied texts and related material.
• Require, as a condition for tenure in Education Colleges and as a consideration for tenure in subject matter Colleges, participation in a State-level organization to design curricula, create all course planning and presentation materials (including, lesson plans, texts, ancillary/supplementary material, multimedia material, test banks, etc.), design and supervise the administration of start-of-year entrance exams and perform random, unannounced education audits.
• Create and make available online the Georgia version of E.D. Hirsch's "What your n-th grader needs to know".
• Publish all State-produced educational material under the Creative Commons "Attribution-Noncommercial-NoDerivatives" license.
• Focus on knowledge and skills before "soft topics" like "learning concepts".
• Eliminate "Smart Boards".
• Eliminate the use of computers outside of the library.
• Eliminate the use of calculators outside of science and finance/business courses.
• Install 3 cameras in each classroom: one at the back and two at each side in front. 
• Record all classes and make recordings available to the public in digital form upon request with a maximum 24 hour turnaround.
• Eliminate basketball and football programs.
• Eliminate school lunch, cafeterias and associated employees.
• No bus stop within 2 miles of school.
• Employ no near-relatives, to include spouses, parents, children, grandchildren, siblings, aunts, uncles and cousins or any of these prefixed with "ex-", of any exempt administrative personnel, board members or any in-school, non-teaching staff.
• Tax increases must be subject to a referendum.
• Eliminate elected boards of education.
• Costs for all activities not part of core instruction are covered by fees to be paid by parents or guardians of the participating students.
• Make all meeting minutes, call logs, emails, letters, administrative documents (budgets, RFI/Q, bids, etc.), expense reports, vendor reports and any other business document available to the public in electronic form within 24 hours of a request.
• Maintain and make available online an accurate catalog of all documents.
• Make detailed budget data available in spreadsheet form.
• Make all GIS, demographic and planning data available online. 

This should be a good start.