Teachers' friend steps forward

He's politically conservative, he voted to kill the allegedly liberal International Baccalaureate and Primary Years Programme in the Coeur d'Alene School District, and he served less than a full year as an appointee to the school board before deciding not to try to win a seat last spring.

Enemy of education? Not Jim Hightower. Not by a long shot.

While you might disagree with some of Hightower's politics and educational procedures - we sure did on the IB/PYP issue - you also might have to re-examine the picture you painted of the Coeur d'Alene pizza man.

Last Sunday's In Person interview with Hightower revealed a couple of fairly astonishing truths about him: One, how openly he talked about his preconceived notions of the ways the district was run and how honestly he disclosed his financial difficulties stemming from a big investment in Kansas pizza franchises at exactly the wrong time; and two, how rabid he is in advocating on behalf of Coeur d'Alene public school teachers.

Hightower is creating a nonprofit that will raise money for teacher training and to ensure that teachers no longer need to buy classroom supplies out of their own pockets. His goal is to present a check annually to the district superintendent, who would be responsible for disbursing the funds equitably.

What he needs now are a few good men and women. Hightower wants a board of active citizens willing to contact businesses about donations, ensure the bank account is audited and attend a one-hour meeting each month. Wisely, Hightower is trying to build a board that is apolitical - current or prospective candidates for elective office aren't the kind of candidates he's seeking for the nonprofit board. The less political prospective board members are, the better.

We strongly support Hightower's mission of helping those in public education any way we can. We believe that once he establishes a working model, other North Idaho school district supporters can emulate it.

If you want to help or know someone who can, please contact Hightower right away. He can be reached at: [email protected] or call him at (208) 660-7900.

Who knows? Maybe those monthly one-hour meetings will include free pizza.