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Leadership in transition

The importance of Curtis Walker still serving on the Akron school board

The Rev. Curtis T. Walker has come to know Akron well the past 17 years as pastor of Wesley Temple AME Zion Church and as a member of the Akron Board of Education since 2000.

Walker's tenure as pastor in Akron ended rather unexpectedly with his reassignment this week to St. Paul's AME Zion Church in Dayton. He promises his service on the school board and to public education in Akron will not be interrupted. His plan is to maintain his residence here and commute to Dayton.

For the school board, which is expecting a significant turnover this election year, his decision is welcome news. Next to a gold mine of its own, the board needs nothing more than experienced leadership and continuity in the coming year as the school district deals with a host of problems from budget deficits to declining enrollment.

Walker was vice president of the school board this year. He is likely to be elected president of the board for the next school year, his second time leading the seven-member panel. With nearly nine years, he currently comes second in length of service to Linda Omobien, who is not seeking re-election this fall after 15 years on the board. James Hardy, the board president this year, also is not seeking re-election.

Walker's term on the board ends in December 2011. His commitment to meet his responsibilities is admirable. If the strain of a long commute to and from Dayton is undeniable, Akron and its schools stand to benefit from his experience if he can juggle successfully the itinerant life.

The school district is in a transitional phase, its superintendent relatively new in the office, and the majority of board members with four years or less on the job. Walker, if he can stay in Akron as he expects, will be well positioned to serve as the bridge in leadership as the district tackles its challenges, improving academic performance, adjusting to coming changes in school funding and taking steps to scale operations to match its declining size.

The Rev. Curtis T. Walker has come to know Akron well the past 17 years as pastor of Wesley Temple AME Zion Church and as a member of the Akron Board of Education since 2000.

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Think
Stow, OH

Posted 04:32 AM, 07/02/2009

I hpe that Reverend Walker is able to make this work. I give him much credit for giving it a try. He is a Board member who seems motivated by the right things and shuns the individual attention and individual credit sought by the current president.
















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