Ann Sutherland
Board Member - District 6

Welcome to my FWISD board page!

I am thrilled to have been chosen by the voters of District 6 to represent them and I am working hard to help our schools get better.  I have been visiting schools and talking with parents, teachers and administrators to learn where we can make our work even more effective.  I love my work and thank you for your confidence.

My first order of business was to improve our audit procedures.  With new Audit Committee Chair Norm Robbins we will be reviewing all audits and making recommendations to the full board.  Our $52 million surplus in ’09-’10 which is going to help in the next two very lean years.  I am also pushing for quarterly review of our financial statements and clearer, more detailed information on our annual audits.

My second priority was to reduce the large number of full time retire-rehire teachers, as they are an extra burden on the district.  Because of this and incentives the Board has adopted, we will be keeping our 2011 layoffs to the absolute minimum—and almost no classroom teachers will be involved.

Next year’s staffing decisions will be made more carefully thanks to a formula being developed under the leadership of new Chief of Administration Dr. Sylvia Reyna.  This will make our hiring decisions more transparent and reduce the appearance of favoritism in staffing.  Also, the central administration will be reducing the staffing requirements for our $32 million in federal Title I funds to help our neediest children, moving decisions to the school site where the needs are fully understood. 

Finally, I am working to make the reporting on student performance more transparent by providing district wide scores and comparisons with districts like ours.

I keep abreast of research on student achievement and other education news.  You can find me on Facebook and also on Twitter@DrAnnSutherland .   The most important articles are posted on my website, www.SutherlandforSchools.org.  You can also read my comments on goings-on at FWISD on my blog there.  Let me know what you are thinking!

I have six grandchildren living in the Metroplex.  They have great teachers.  We need to honor these men and women for their dedication and hard work.  We also must recognize the contributions of every FWISD worker--from the crossing guards, to the classroom aides, to the principals and other administrators who tie the work of all together.